Legend of Final Destiny: Fateful Gathering
by Chaos-Paladin
Summary: What begins with a simple shard becomes one adventure that will change Ash's life forever. Join Ash in the legend of a lifetime with new friends, foes, and ancient secrets that could destroy the universe! AAML among many others.
1. An old friend, a new adventure

**Legend of Final Destiny: Fateful Gathering**

**By Chaos Paladin

* * *

**

_**Chapter 1 – An old friend, a new adventure**_

Outskirts of Cerulean City

_Ding dong!_ "Attention passengers of the Orre region magnet express. We are please to announce that we will be approaching the outskirts of Cerulean city in just a few minutes. Please be sure to gather your belongings and prepare for arrival."

"Hm?" A 15 year old raven haired teen stirred at the sound of the overhead loud speaker. He look down on his lap to see Pikachu curled up on his lap, sleeping. They had been riding on the train for 36 hours straight, which was enough to tire anyone out. It has been well over a month since he finished first place in the Orre league. It wasn't a crushing victory, but something to be proud of. Sticking out of his green backpack was a tall and beautifully made crystal trophy with a Pokéball on top of it. The bottom front of the trophy was his name, engraved on a steel plate: _Ash Ketchum_. Ash smiled to himself, feeling proud. Ranking first place in a huge league was an astounding accomplishment. Not only is he now a very popular trainer, but also that much closer to becoming a Pokémon master! While there was much to smile about, he couldn't help but feel like something was lacking. Being a Pokémon master would be a tremendous blessing, but what happens then? What would be left? Sure, the adventures were great in the past, and he saved the world, more than once in fact, but it felt like there was more to accomplish, like a special purpose, a goal in life that was made just for him.

Then again, he could be over thinking things. The doctors _did_ tell him not to over do it.

Putting his contemplations aside, Ash set his mind to better thoughts, like the main reason he was back in Kanto. He smiled widely while whistling a nameless tune, excited to see one of his oldest and best friends. Misty Waterflower.

Ash leaned back on the smooth, velvet seat and spun his red cap backwards, watching the trees outside the window pass by quickly. 2 and a half years had gone by since he seen her last, and that was when he was traveling with his other three best friends: Brock, May, and Max. Sadly, after the Hoenn league, they all parted, following in their own path. Brock, who wanted to become the world's best Pokémon breeder, left to go back to Pewter city and open a breeding center. Max wished to go back home in order to start preparing himself for his first Pokémon journey. Unfortunately, May had to stay with her little brother Max for a short period of time since he was still young, so she could no longer travel with Ash. It was sad since Ash had to travel throughout the entire Orre region alone, but in time he learned how to fend for himself. He improved himself physically as well as his cooking skills…after months of trial and almost fatal error.

_Ding dong!_ "Welcome travelers to the Kanto region! We hope that you've had a pleasant trip! Remember to collect your personal items and exit the train in an orderly fashion…"

"Ah! Finally!" Ash yawned as he stretched. His movements caused the sleeping Pikachu to wake up.

"Pika…" The mouse rubbed his eyes and yawned like Ash did.

"Hey buddy, did you sleep well?"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu nodded.

"Alright, let's head to Cerulean city and surprise Misty!"

Pikachu gave him a sly look. "Pikapi chu pikachupi."

Ash reddened at the comment. "No, it's not that I like her (which I don't!), it's just that it has been awhile, so I thought maybe I should pay a visit. Nothing special, honest!"

Pikachu disagreed, but said no more as he ran up to Ash's shoulder as he gathering his backpack and trophy, then boarded out the train. After checking out, he finally made it outside to fresh air.

His current location was a small forest nearby Cerulean city. It would take only about ten minutes to reach the city, so it was no big deal. As he traveled towards the city, something caught his eye. It shone brightly by the reflection of the sun. Curious, he walked over to the object and crouched over it. It was a beautifully, rainbow colored shard. As he touched it, he felt a strange surge of energy come it. He and Pikachu gazed at the fragment, awe-struck. It was dazzling. Not only that, but Ash could tell that there was something special about it.

"Check this thing out Pikachu. I wonder what it is…" Ash inspected the shard from different angles.

Suddenly, Pikachu's ears perked up, sensing a presence. Ash and Pikachu glanced at the rustling bushes ahead. Something was coming. A group of men donned in a black uniform emerged from the bushes. A red "R" was printed on their shirts and they wore a black hat. One of the men saw the fragment in Ash's hands.

"Hey kid! You better give that shard to us if you know what's good for you!"

Ash narrowed his eyes suspiciously. There was only one group that wore such a uniform, Team Rocket. If they wanted the shard, it must be very important. He definitely could not give it to them. "What do you guys want with it?"

"Oh, so you wanna be difficult, huh? Go, Golbat!" The rocket grunt grabbed a red and white Pokéball from his Pokébelt and summoned a light green bat with a large mouth and fangs. "Use wing attack on the twerp!" The bat lunged itself at Ash. The said boy's eyebrow twitched at the word twerp. While he was at the Orre region, he had his daily routine with the Team Rocket trio, namely Jessie, James and Meowth. They soon learned that calling him a twerp was like mixing fire with gasoline.

Not a good thing.

"Pikachu! Use thunder!" Ash commanded. Pikachu, also incensed about his best friend being insulted, abided to Ash's command and released a devastating electric shock at the group of rockets and Golbat. All of the enemies were paralyzed from the electric attack. Ash angrily stomped on the rocket grunt that insulted him. "That's what you get! Don't EVER call me a twerp!" Ash huffed and took one step forward when he froze on the spot. 20 more grunts spotted him from the distance.

"Think you're gonna get away with that kid?" One of the Rockets shot. They all grabbed their Pokéballs, ready to unleash an onslaught upon Ash, who sweat-dropped fiercely. It was just a few too many rockets for him to handle at once. He had no choice but to use _it_.

"Heh, you guys are in for it now! You leave me no choice but to use my ultimate attack!" Suddenly, Ash's eyes widened as he pointed behind them. "Oh my god! What the heck is that?"

"Wha?" All of the Rockets turned around to see what he was pointing at, but saw nothing. When they turned back around, they saw Ash standing still in the same pointing pose. Slowly, Ash started to fade out until he was all gone. When the grunts noticed the foot prints leading to Cerulean city, they all face-faulted. They were tricked! "GET HIM!" They charged in the direction Ash and Pikachu had gone.

10 minutes later, a mad dashing Ash made it to the city, with Team Rocket hot on his trail. He and Pikachu pushed their legs as hard as they could to get away. He managed to put some distance between them as he cut corners and dodged traffic. Just as he came around a corner—

_SLAM!_

Ash tumbled back in a daze, his head throbbing from the head on head collision. When his eyes regained focus, he couldn't believe his eyes. In front of him was a beautiful girl around his age. She wore a pair of sneakers, a sleeveless yellow button-up shirt with a red under shirt, and yellow shorts. She had vibrant orange hair and deep emerald eyes. For a moment, Ash lost his breath. Pikachu instantly recognized the girl and jumped in her arms.

"Misty?" Ash called, surprised about meeting her now of all times.

"Pikachu? Ash? What are you guys doing here?" Misty asked, surprised as well. Ash was about to answer when he remembered why he was running in the first place. He grabbed her hand and ran with her in tow.

"No time to explain, just follow me! Team rocket's after me!"

"Team Rocket? Again?"

"Yeah. We need a place to hide, and fast!" Ash turned another corner and found a narrow alleyway. Quickly, he grabbed Misty and sandwiched themselves in the tight space. Pikachu pushed himself inside with them. They watched silently as the Rockets dashed past them one by one. Ash, Misty and Pikachu held in their breaths until they were gone, releasing a sigh of relief. "Whew! That was close, huh?"

"U-um…A-Ash?" Misty called timidly, blushing.

"What is…oh…" Ash slowed to a stop when he faced Misty. The tight space made them press against each other, and their faces were so close, just a tilt of their heads could cause their lips to connect. Ash's face turned bright red at the compromising position…which soon turned to worry when Misty was suddenly irritated.

"Ash…" She growled in a whisper, "That better be a Pokédex I'm feeling…"

"Eep!" Ash paled. That just HAD to happen now! Stupid Brock and his past influence! He hurriedly moved out of the confined space, helping Misty along the way. "Ehehehe, I'm sorry about cramming you in there. I was in a hurry with those rocket goons after me, and I sorta panicked."

"Oh well. Come with me to the gym. You can tell me more about what happened there…" With that, Ash, Misty and Pikachu headed for the Cerulean gym.

The gym was exactly how Ash remembered it. The giant Seel logo on the front with the words "Cerulean Gym" plastered on it, the yellow and pink colors and a tank of water outside. The gang entered the indoor pool area and sat on the benches, taking a break from all the running.

"So Ash, what are you doing in Cerulean city?" Misty asked.

"I just came from the Orre region just to see how you were doing. Speaking of which, check this out!" Ash dug into his backpack and pulled out the sparkling Orre trophy. Misty couldn't help but gasp in surprise.

"Wow, it's beautiful!"

Ash grinned. "Yep! Only the best for first place!"

"You got first place?"

Ash's grinned dropped into a small frown. "Jeeze, you don't have to sound so surprised…"

Misty punched him lightly on the arm. "You know that's not what I meant."

"Yeah, I know…" Ash rubbed the back of his head and smiled timidly. "Anyway, how are things here at the gym?

She groaned tiredly as she slumped on the chair. "Exhausting. My sisters are no help around here, not to mention terrible with Pokémon battles. But enough about that, why was Team Rocket after you?"

"Well, I think it's because of this thing…" Ash showed Misty the shard he picked up earlier. Misty stared at it, almost hypnotized by its beauty.

"Wow…that is the most gorgeous thing I've ever seen! Where did you find it?"

"That's the strange part. I found it in some bushes while coming here. It seems odd that someone would just leave this thing around. When Team Rocket saw me with it they attacked me to try and get it. Luckily, Pikachu helped me escape. Have you ever seen anything like this before?"

Misty shook her head. "No, I haven't. Maybe there's someone that might know…oh, I know! Why don't we call Professor Oak?"

"Sure." Ash nodded. He and Misty made their way to the vid-phone in the lobby area. Ash picked up the phone and dialed the number. After three rings, the video screen came to life, revealing an old man in his mid sixties, wearing a lab coat, red shirt and brown slacks. "Hey professor, it's me, Ash!"

"Ash? Oh Ash! How are you these days?"

"I'm doing great professor! Check out my trophy for first place!" Ash flashed his trophy in front of the screen.

"That's a real accomplishment there Ash! Say, where are you calling from?"

"I'm calling from Misty's house!"

Oak gaped in surprise. "Really now? It's about time you two got together, but doing such things at your age, shame on you!"

Ash promptly face-faulted, along with a red in the face Misty. "That's not what I meant professor!"

"Ahahaha, don't worry Ash, I was just kidding with you."

"Well that was not funny!

"Yeah, especially since Ash would most likely eat us out of house and home!" Misty joked from the side, catching Ash's glare.

Oak smiled at the sight of Misty hovering behind Ash. "Oh, hello Misty. It's been awhile. How have you been?"

"Fine professor." She answered.

"Oh yeah, professor, I need your help with something. I found this shard earlier and I was wondering if you knew what it was." Ash showed him the shard he found. Oak leaned towards the screen and narrowed his eyes. After a few moments, he raised an eyebrow.

"Hmm…it doesn't look like anything I've seen before. Try transporting it to me." Oak set up the transfer machine that was next to the phone, and Ash did the same. When the transfer machine was set up, Ash placed the shard inside the teleportation zone. When they both activated the machine, white streaks of electricity surged the spot and the shard. The shard didn't seem to be effected at all. Ash stopped the machine and scrutinized the fragment in confusion.

"How odd. It didn't work." Ash found the situation familiar.

"That is very strange indeed. "Professor Oak said. "Didn't this happen with the GS ball many years ago?"

Ash's eyes brightened when Oak mentioned the GS ball. "Oh yeah, I remember now! Do you think this has any connection with the GS ball?"

"Hmm…" Oak held his chin in thought. "Maybe. That shard of yours intrigues me. Bring it over to Pallet town and let me have a look."

"Okay, I'll see you later!"

"Bye Ash!"

_Click!_

Ash hung up the phone and faced Misty. "Sounds like another great adventure!"

Misty rolled her eyes. "You're just going back home, Ash. It's not like this is going to turn out to be some kind of great journey."

Ash grabbed his backpack. "Well, there's no time like the present! Let's get going!"

Misty was confused by that last sentence. "Wait…let's? As in you and me?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah, aren't you coming along?"

She stormed up to his face, glaring. "What's the big idea automatically thinking that I would just come along like that? You can't just pop up out of nowhere and just say "Let's get going!" as if it was already decided!"

"So…does that mean you don't want to come?" Ash gazed at her with a disappointed expression.

"I didn't say that! Just don't assume things all the time!"

His smiled brightened up again. "Great, well let's get going!"

"Um…Ash? Look outside." Misty pointed out the window. When Ash looked at the sky, it was a mix of orange and purple, indicating that night was approaching. Ash sighed in disappointment. "Oh well, looks like we'll have to go tomorrow."

Ash and Misty left towards the living room area which consisted of a large couch, coffee table, recliner, a large screen television, lamp, and white carpeting. Ash felt right at home sitting on the couch with Misty. Whether it was because the atmosphere or Misty's presence he couldn't tell, but he was having the time of his life. The two talked for many hours. Luckily, Misty's sisters were out of town for the weekend. They would torment the two for hours, saying how cute they are together, and other embarrassing comments. When Ash glanced at the clocked that hung on the wall, he paled.

"11:30? The Pokémon center's closed now! Aw man! Now where am I going to sleep?" He groaned. At this rate, he would have to sleep outside. Even though he was used to it, doing it in the city was always a pain in the neck. Misty thought about his option, and then blushed furiously at the best option.

There was no one else she would do it for.

"U-um…Ash? You could…err…stay here, if you want…" She suggested.

"Huh?" Ash stared at Misty in shock. That was the last thing he had ever expected her to say. "Are you sure? I mean, is that really okay with you?" Misty nodded slowly, putting on a nervous smile. Ash then gave her a genuine smile. "Wow Misty! That's great, thanks! You're the best!" He gave her a bear hug of attitude. Misty reddened hard, caught off guard.

"I-I-It's no problem." Misty was soon released from the warm embrace.

"But really, thanks. I suppose I'll take the couch here."

"What? No, you go ahead and rest in my room. I'll be here." Misty offered.

"No way. I can't take away your room. I'll stay here."

"I said it's fine. You take my room and I'll be here! It's fine, really!"

"No it's not fine! I am not going to take your room!"

"Yes you are!"

"No I'm not!"

Yes you are!"

No I'm not!"

Pikachu sighed heavily. It was nice having peace and quiet with Ash during the Orre league, and even while being used to the arguments Ash used to have with Misty, this was by far the most pointless argument to date. After listening to their argument for over five minutes, he decided to take matters into his own paws.

_ZAP! ZAP!_

"Ow!" Both Ash and Misty winced from the jolt attack Pikachu gave them. Their attention was turned to the mouse as he pulled out a silver coin from Ash's backpack. Ash immediately got the message.

"Oh I get it! We'll decide with a coin toss! What ever the coin decides, we stick with it, no matter what. Alright Misty?"

"Sure." Misty nodded. Pikachu scampered to the top of the coffee table and flipped the coin. When the coin landed, Ash and Misty were shocked with the result.

Sides.

"Whoa…what were the odds?" Ash mused. After putting two and two together, he finally figured out the perfect solution. "I suppose that works. We'll just sleep together."

_BASH!_

Ash's face was pressed into the carpet under the pressure of Misty's mallet. "Have you lost your mind?" She yelled.

"Ow…why did you hit me for? We're just sleeping together in the same bed. We used to camp together all the time, remember?" Ash said as he got up and glared at the mallet-wielding red head. Misty sighed when she remembered a small detail about Ash. He was as dense as a rock! The concept of such a situation would probably never cross his mind, though his earlier action back when they were stuck in they alleyway did bring Ash's innocence into question. Just what did Brock teach him while she was gone?

Ash yawned as he stretched his arms. "Well, let's go. We got some traveling to do tomorrow." They both went upstairs towards Misty's room. When they left, Pikachu grinned when he picked up the coin and flipped it again, having it land on sides. Static electricity rocks!

In Misty's room, Ash had gone to get dressed first while Misty fixed the room. Misty could hardly believe what just happened. Here she was, fixing her bed for her AND Ash. It was true they camped together in the past, so it wasn't too big of a deal, but it was still unnerving. At least it would be somewhat like practice for her, seeing that they would be doing this until they reached Pallet town.

"All done. Your turn." Ash called from behind the door.

"I'm done here too. Come in." She invited. Ash opened the door and glanced around. The entire room was light blue. On the corner was a tall, white dresser with a small lamp on top, a twin size bed, and a computer desk with a small laptop. The floor was littered with many plush dolls of Seels, Starmies, and Tentacruels. Misty soon left the room with her pajamas in her hand. Ash flopped on the bed, enjoying the feel of a soft feathered bed. By the time Misty had come back from the bathroom, Ash was already asleep. She laid on the bed and turned to face Ash, which much to her discomfort was very close to her, a few inches away.

Only Ash, Misty thought. No other boy ever set foot in her room, much less slept in the same bed as her. She continued to gaze at him while he slept. How long has it been, maybe 3 or 4 years? She couldn't remember when she had fallen for the adorable idiot, but she did. Everything about him appealed to her in some way. Perhaps it was his heart and determination that stole her heart. It was sad when she had to leave him many years ago, but it was unavoidable. When she heard that May had been traveling with Ash for a period of time, she felt slightly envious, even if she traveled with him for so much longer. Misty may had been a hopeless romantic at times, but she knew not to rush things. She and Ash were still young, and all she really wanted was to see Ash happy, and be one of the reasons he was happy. If he had found someone else and was happy, she knew she wouldn't be very happy about it, but no matter what, she would support Ash's decision. That is what she believed was true love, patients and acceptance. If she was truly destined to be with Ash, then there was no need to rush things. Time would allow Ash to mature, and then hopefully he would tell her how he feels about her.

Only time would tell.

"Sweet dreams…Ash…" She whispered softly before falling asleep.

Secret Underground Complex

A forty year old man sat in his brown wooden office desk. His brown hair was slicked back and he wore an orange suit. A mound of research papers and reports was stacked in front of him. Ever since he heard about an all powerful artifact, he had been scouring the world for them. Unfortunately for him, Team Aqua and Team Magma had somehow gotten word of its existence and were continuously in his way. This sacred artifact was sought after over 5000 years ago, but during a climatic war, it shattered and scattered all over the planet. Knowledge of it was so limited that not even he, Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket, knew of the object's name. He glanced at his watched, waiting for the scheduled report from the scout group he sent to Cerulean earlier.

A few minutes later, the phone on his desk started to ring. He picked it up after one ring and answered gruffly. "Report."

"Sir, we found the location of the object we were supposed to find, but some kid got ahead of us and ran away with it. His Pikachu caught us by surprise."

"Pikachu?" Giovanni had his suspicions. "Did the kid with the Pikachu happen to wear a red cap and have black hair?"

"Yeah, that's him! Even now, some of the scouts are looking for him in the city."

"Hmm…" Giovanni knew Ash very well. That boy had caused more trouble to him than he predicted. A mere scout group wasn't going to be enough to capture the boy. He had to outsmart and ensnare him in a trap. He knew just the way to do it. Chances are he would obtain the shard in the process. "Withdraw your men from the area. You will meet with Shiranui in front of Pewter city. You will be briefed on your next assignment there. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal."

"Now move out! Do not fail me." Giovanni hung up the phone and sat back on his leather chair, grinning maliciously. The plan was perfect. "Ash Ketchum…your luck has run out…"

Cerulean City Gym – Misty's Room

It was early morning and Ash had awoken before Misty. When he regained focus with his eyes, he was a little shocked. Sure, he remembered both he and Misty sleeping on the same bed and he wasn't dumb enough to think that she would be far away or anything, but one thing startled him…

Why was her arms wrapped around him?

A red streak crossed his face, flustered. Her arms were smooth, not to mention warm. Another alarming fact was how close she was. He could feel her breath beating against his lips. He was nervous. If he moved forward just a little bit, his lips would be over hers

Of course, if he valued his life, he wouldn't attempt such a risk.

First, he would try to wiggle his way out of her embrace. Ash slowly inched himself out of her grasp. He felt like a bug that was about to be devoured by a spider. After stretching his tired limbs, he decided to surprise Misty with his improved kitchen skills.

15 minutes later, Misty woke up to an empty bed. She had wondered where Ash went until she smelt something. It smelt good. Curious, she got up and proceeded downstairs towards the kitchen. What she saw was something unexpected.

"Hey Misty! Good morning!" Ash greeted cheerily.

"Pikachupi!" Pikachu greeted as well. Ash was cooking breakfast at the stove while Pikachu set up the plates. Misty didn't know what surprised her more. The fact Ash was cooking or Ash was cooking something good? She almost wished that her sisters didn't leave for the weekend. They would flip if they saw Ash making breakfast…but they would also flip if they knew he spent the night.

She would never hear the end of it.

"Whoa, Ash and cooking all in one? If only your sense of direction improved, then it would be a real miracle!" Misty sniggered.

"Hey! I'll have you know that my sense of direction has improved greatly!"

"Pika!" Pikachu made an X mark with his paws, denying Ash's comment. Ash glared at the mouse.

"Gee, thanks for the backup Pikachu." He said sardonically. After a few minutes, the food was ready. Ash and Misty sat across from each other. Misty poked at her food, as though to test it for movement. "Oh come on Misty! It's not like the food is going to jump at you."

"Well with you, who knows?" Summing up all her courage, Misty took a bite of the meal. After tasting it, she was surprised. "I can't believe it…I ate your food and I'm still alive? You really did improve." She praised…sort of.

"Can't you say "good job" like a normal girl would?" Ash scowled lightly.

"Since when was I a normal girl?" Misty countered, still chewing her food.

"Good point." After they finished eating, the two were ready for their trip towards Pallet town. Before they headed out the door, Misty left a note for her sisters, letting them know where she went.

While walking, Misty thought of an interesting idea. "Say, when we pass by Pewter city, why don't we check up on Brock? A path was made around Mt. Moon, so we should be there within 2 days max."

"That's not a bad idea. Let's do it!" Ash agreed.

On top of a building, a shadowed figure with a communicator headset stared down at Ash and Misty. "I see…he looks exactly like him. Do you think he's…?"

"Yeah, no doubt about it!" The voice in the communicator confirmed. "He has a fragment right? I say we take it away from him now before he realizes what it really is."

The figure held his chin in thought as he followed Ash with sharp, calculating blue eyes. "Not yet…I want to see how this plays out for a little while. There's no telling if he is friend or foe, but if he interferes with us…he'll be dealt with…swiftly." The figure faded out of sight smoothly.

* * *

That's the end of chapter one! Trust me when I say that you'll love this rewrite (Truth be told, it is completely different than the original version, but a lot better too)! Please, all reviews are appreciated! Next chapter has plenty of action, as well as a surprise! Stay tune to see what! (By the way, the story is changed, but a lot of things will remain the same, such as some villains and names) 

By the way, if there are any errors, be sure to point them out so that i can make corrections, thanks in advance.

Speaking of which, I would like to thank the following people who are currently helping me out with this awesome fic: Mikazuchi, Satoshi Vash Kuwabara III, and Sykilik101. You guys rock!

Disclaimer: Note that I do not, repeat, do not own Pokemon!


	2. Shadow raid

**_Chapter 2 – Shadow raid_**

Pewter city

After 2 days of traveling, Ash and Misty finally reached Pewter city. It was late afternoon and the sun was starting to set. As they entered the city, the streets were silent, too silent. It wasn't a bustling metropolis like the other cities such a Viridian, but there would still be some business and people going about. It was a wonder what could have happened.

"It sure is quiet…I wonder where everyone is." Ash wondered to himself.

"Yeah. It's starting to creep me out." Misty walked closely to Ash, glancing cautiously. It had been over five minutes, yet neither Ash nor Misty saw anyone, not even Pokémon. Ash was about to turn the corner when he stepped back and blocked Misty from stepping any further. Pikachu's fur stood on end as he growled. Danger was near. "What's wrong Ash" She whispered quietly.

"It's Team Rocket. They're here."

"Did they follow us here?"

"I don't know, but we need answers. With them here and this city being so quiet, I have a bad feeling about this. We should try to find Brock. Let's hurry!" The two stealthily dodged the rocket patrols as they made their way to the Pewter city gym. The gym was a little over five blocks away, and each intersection had 1 to 3 rockets patrolling the area.

The first block was relatively easy. There was only one rocket there and all they needed to do was run the opposite direction he was facing. The second block was just as simple. Though there were two rockets, there was a trail of bushes that allowed Ash and Misty to keep out of sight. This continued until they reached the last block. There were two rockets and little cover. It seemed simple enough.

_ACHOO!_

…Until an allergenic Pikachu caught dust in his nose. The two grunts turned to see Ash and Misty trying to get past them. They were caught.

"Get him!" One of the grunts yelled. Ash had to hurry and take them out before the other rockets were alerted. The rocket grunts summoned a Golbat and a shrew with many sharp, brown spines on its back, a Sandslash. This was a double battle.

"Go, Starmie!" Misty called out. A purple star Pokémon with a red jewel in the middle stood ready to battle. "Use Water Gun on Sandslash!" Starmie blasted the Sandslash with a high pressure water attack. It was super effective and resulted in knocking out the Pokémon.

"You'll pay for that! Golbat, use Mega Drain on Starmie!" The second grunt commanded. The giant bat screeched as it shot after Starmie with bared fangs.

"Thunderbolt Pikachu!" Ash called out quickly. The lightning quick mouse jumped in front of Starmie and released a powerful charge of electricity at the bat. The electric attack was super effective against the poison/flying type. Golbat fell to the ground and fainted. The rocket grunts were defeated.

"That's it, time for reinforcements!"

"Oh no you don't!"

_POW!_

Ash swung his fist at the grunt who held the communicator in his hands, laying him out cold. The second grunt was about to strike Ash when Misty sent him flying with a mallet bash! Ash narrowed his eyes as Misty slipped her mallet back in her secret hiding spot. "You know, even with all the years I've known you, I still can't figure out where you hide that blasted thing!" Ash commented, "I'll find it one day!"

"Yeah, in your dreams!" Misty countered, "There's no time left. Let's hide the bodies and hurry. The other guys might've heard the brawl."

"Okay." Ash and Misty quickly hid the bodies behind some bushes, making sure they didn't leave a trace. It took a minute before they reached the gym gates, but there were two grunts and a Pokémon keeping guard. Ash and Misty's jaw dropped in surprise.

'You've got to be kidding me…' They both recognized the two rockets. The woman with the dark red hair, Jessie, and the man with the light violet hair, James, wore their custom made Team Rocket uniforms. The cat with a gold medallion on his forehead, Meowth, was next to them, apparently telling them how lucky they were to have him around. Luckily, those were the only rockets. After conceiving a plan, Ash, Misty and Pikachu separated.

"This is SO boring…" Jessie groaned, resting against the fence along with James and Meowth. "Why doesn't the boss give us something better to do?"

"It's because you two keep messing everything up." Meowth answered snidely.

_Stomp!_

"It wasn't like you were of any help you stupid feline!" James shot, crushing the cat under his boot.

"You shouldn't talk James! It's not like you're any better!" Jessie snapped.

"What? I'm WAY better than that—EEP!" James jumped when he felt something poke at his back. Jessie and Meowth did the same, feeling something similar behind them.

"It's been awhile." Ash said from behind.

"I know that voice! It's the twe—err, Ash!" James corrected quickly, not wanting to make the mistake of calling Ash a twerp. He was about to turn around when Ash jabbed him in the back.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you! One wrong move and it could be your last." Ash whispered evilly. James started sweating bullets.

"Go ahead and do what you want! Just don't hurt me…" James cried.

Jessie narrowed her light blue eyes at the cowardly James. "You wuss! Show some back bone!"

"My back bone is what he's aiming at!"

Ash winked at Misty and Pikachu, who were behind Jessie and Pikachu. "Now Pikachu!"

"Pika—CHU!" A strong surge of electric energy surged through Meowth, Jessie and James, paralyzing and knocking them out.

"Good work you two." Ash complimented. He grinned sneakily as he held his two fore fingers in the air as though it was a gun. He loved that trick. "Alright, we cleared the way, so let's go find Brock."

"Right!" Misty nodded. The three entered through the front double doors of the stone built gym. The main arena was dim, only a few lights filtering the building. As they walked throughout the gym, they found the place eerily quiet. Misty walked close to Ash, feeling nervous. Being so close to Misty made Ash apprehensive as well. It was a wonder how he was able to stay in the same bed as Misty that night. Maybe Brock really was an influence…

Ash shuddered to think what he would do next if that was the case.

"I wonder if Brock is even—WAA!"

_CRASH!_

Ash slammed face first on the floor, tripping over something. "Man that smarts…" He seethed. His eye caught a small rope on the floor. Come to think of it, that part of the floor had a faint, but noticeable line, creating the image of a secret door. "What's this? I never noticed this the last time I was here…" He grabbed the rope and yanked it open. A path was revealed! Ash took a peek inside. "It's so dark down there. I wonder if—"

_WAM!_

"GAH!" Ash fell backwards, clutching his face in pain. A small volleyball shot from the basement and careened into his face. Misty took a closer look down at the basement. There were kids inside! One of the dark skinned kids recognized Misty's face.

"Hey you guys, it's Misty! She's come to rescue us!" A boy cried to his brothers and sisters. They were about to emerge from the basement when Ash shot up and glared at them.

"I'm the one who came to save you, yet I just got beamed by a volleyball! Don't just throw stuff at people's faces, especially those who are trying to save you!" Ash bellowed. The eldest of the group of kids smiled apologetically.

"Sorry about that. We thought you were Team Rocket at first glance, so we sorta panicked."

"Aren't you Brock's siblings?" Misty inquired. The boy nodded.

"Yeah, I'm the second oldest, Jiroo. You've got to rescue Brock! When Team Rocket burst inside, Brock hid us here and took them on, but ended up getting captured! They took him to their base in the middle of the city!"

"Sure thing! We'll not only save Brock, but the city as well!" Ash declared, clenching his fist. Misty nodded in agreement.

"Thanks. I'll show you some of our supplies." Jiroo guided Ash and Misty to the medical room where Brock goes after his gym battles. Ash and Misty grabbed some Pokémon healing supplies and extra medical kits in case they wind up injured. "I'm sorry, but we don't have any Pokémon to help you with. We'll stay here incase you need to come back for healing."

Ash nodded. "Yeah, good idea. Let's go Misty."

"Okay." After they made a plan for a back attack, Ash, Misty and Pikachu left the gym and headed towards the Team Rocket base stationed in the city.

Team Rocket Base

"Professor Shiranui. Our spy cameras have detected a red headed girl and a boy with a Pikachu in the area. They are currently heading towards the back of the complex. Should we eliminate him?"

The blue haired scientist grinned wickedly. "No, this is the special guest we've been waiting for. Make the special arrangements for them."

"Understood." Shiranui hung up the phone, eager to see the look on Ash's face when he realizes that he is heading towards a trap. Revenge was never so sweet.

The back of Team Rocket Base

"Pikachu, use thunder wave!" Ash commanded. Pikachu let loose an electrical wave, paralyzing the remaining rockets and their Pokémon. "Alright, that takes care of them. Let's head inside." With that, Ash and Misty ran inside the back door of the base. The facility was very high tech and clean, just like the past bases they had infiltrated before. After crossing a few hallways, the group came across a large, dark room.

"Man its dark here. I wish we had some light…" Just as Ash said that, the lights turned out. When Ash saw dozens of armed rockets pointing guns at the two, he wished the lights were off. He noticed the blue haired scientist among the rockets, Shiranui, the head of Team Rocket's R&D division.

"It has been awhile Ash Ketchum." Shiranui sneered, "I would like to welcome you to the last moments of your life. I hope you enjoy your stay. SEIZE HIM!" Two of the rockets shot stun bullets at Ash, Misty and Pikachu, knocking them unconscious.

Sometime later, Ash's eyes fluttered open, still feeling the effects of the tranquilizer shots. His eyes met with two people, one of them being Misty. The other was a dark skinned man around 18 years old with short, spiky brown hair. "Misty? Brock?"

"Hey man, how are ya?" Brock inquired.

"Agh…I've had better days." Ash was suddenly alert, "What happened?"

"Team Rocket locked us up. They took all of our Pokémon and items." Misty answered.

"Oh no…Pikachu…" Ash thought fearfully. There was no telling what was going to happen to them. Without items and Pokémon, things were starting to look hopeless…

Meanwhile, on the roof of the complex, a Team Rocket guard stood watch, carrying a sniper rifle. It was night time and he had night watch, which was equal to extreme boredom. "Man this is boring. Who the heck is going to come from the roof? I need a smoke…" The man was about to grab his pack of cigarettes when a pair of arms immobilized him from behind, forcing him to drop the gun. The blade of a knife was inches from severing his throat. "Ack!" He struggled to break free, but it was useless.

"Didn't anyone tell you that smoking is bad for your health?" A female voice whispered.

"Arg, who are you?"

"I'm a medical doctor with a bad attitude. If you don't tell me what I need to know, I'll be sure to prescribe a knife for your _sore_ throat." The woman replied through clenched teeth, pressing the combat knife closer to his throat.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you what you want to know!"

"How many hostages do you have inside?"

"Three hostages."

"And where are they?"

"They are in the basement. Two guards are keeping watch on them. C-can I go now?"

"Of course. Good night."

_THWACK!_

The rocket grunt crumpled to the ground, unconscious. The woman who knocked him out wore an all black stealth suit and military boots. On her waist was a utility belt, carrying Pokéballs, smoke bombs, a high tech cloaking device, a stun pistol, a sheath for her knife, and an mp3 player, a personal favorite. On her back was a large, custom made rifle. A black mask covered her mouth, nose and hair while a pair of specially made goggles covered her eyes. She clicked on her ear piece communicator.

"Sniper tango put to rest. Did you catch what he said?"

"_Yeah,we did. Rescue the hostages first and then go to the main control room and shut down the facility. That's when we will send in the rest of the team to neutralize the enemy forces."_ A mature female voice spoke.

"Roger. I'm going in stealth mode." The girl pressed a button on her cloaking device. Suddenly, her body started to fade from sight, turning virtually invisible. She pressed another button, this time on her mp3 player, playing a song perfect for the sneaking mission.

"…_Must you always play music during a mission?_" The voice sighed from the communicator.

"It sets the mood." She reasoned.

"_It sets you up for disaster._"

"Don't worry yourself about that. The volume mutes itself whenever there's a certain level of noise, or you guys call me, so there's nothing to worry about. You know how I work."

"_Fine, fine, just finish the mission._"

"You got it." The cloaked spy walked towards the edge and jumped off the building! Halfway down, she took out her rifle and shot a grappling hook at the wall. She swung and landed soundlessly on the ground. Stealthily, she made her way towards one of the windows. She set the heat sensor function of her visor and looked through the window. No one was home. The next sensor she activated was the EM (electromagnetic) sensor. There was a camera on the corner of the room. Good thing she was invisible, and having the window already open made it easy for her. Wait…it was _too_ easy. Switching her visor to infrared sensor, she spotted why it was so easy. Infrared lasers streaked across the room. One false step and the enemy would be all over her. With one leap, she somersaulted into the dark room and made acrobatic flips towards the other side of the room, dodging all of the lasers. With only ten seconds before the cloaking device needed to recharge, she whipped out her rifle and aimed it at the camera.

_Click!_

The gun's laser pointer turned green when it hit the camera. The camera's lens was being infected and blinded. Just as she finished, her cloak wore off. Deciding it was better to conserve energy, she switched off her cloaking device. She stepped in front of the door and inserted a small, camera like device under the door. When she looked through it, she saw no guards. Security was at a minimum. Opening the door, she went from shadow to shadow, making sure to avoid detection at all cost. When she reached a stairway leading to the basement, she was halfway down when a guard was approaching. Thinking quickly, she jumped up on the wall and suspended herself by pressing her legs on the walls. The guard didn't notice her when he was going upstairs. Once he was directly under her, she dropped down and knocked him out.

After hiding the body, the girl continued towards the basement. According to the map of the structure's interior, the prison chambers were four cell blocks away. It should be easy with her cloaking device, which she activated. After checking for infrared lasers and other such traps, she sprinted through cell blocks 1 through 3. At the fourth one, she saw the two guards…

With Ash, Misty and Brock, seeing they were stuck, might as well pass the time with friendly conversation. "So Brock, what have you been doing with yourself?" Misty asked.

"Well, I've been taking care of my brothers and sisters while trying to work on my breeding skills. The only thing left is to set up a breeding center, but this city is too small and I don't have enough people or money. What about you guys?"

"I came on top in the Orre League!" Ash boasted.

"Good job Ash!" Brock then held his chin in thought. "You know, isn't that the first league you got first place in ever since the orange islands? And even then, it was just against one guy."

"Well…a victory is still a victory!"

"Yeah, that's just another way to say newbie!" Misty quipped jokingly.

"Well at least I won a few leagues, unlike a certain, lazy redhead!" Ash countered.

"And all of this is coming from a wannabe trainer who got his tail whipped at the Whirl Cup competition by the "lazy redhead"."

"You guys never change." Brock chuckled. Suddenly, they were interrupted by the sound of two bodies dropping. It came from the guards who were guarding their cell. The gang stood alert, silently watching the front of their cells, which started opening. Ash looked around, but found no one.

"Who's there?" Ash asked. Everyone was startled when a woman appeared in front of them from out of nowhere! Ash, Misty and Brock were flabbergasted. How did she do that?

"Ash? Is that you?" The woman asked, surprised.

"Yeah, I'm Ash. But how do you know me?" Before Ash could say anymore, Brock immediately came up to the woman.

"Why hello dark, lovely and mysterious! My name is Brock, and if you are not busy after we get out of here, how about we have dinner, just the two of—OW, my ear!" He seethed, being tugged by Misty.

"Save it for when we're out of here!" She chastised. The spy was about to say something when her receiver came to life.

"_What's your situation?_"

"Hostages rescued, and you wouldn't believe who it is! It's Ash, Misty and Brock!"

"_What? You've got to be kidding me! It's really those kids?"_

"Yeah. Permission to have them come along for the duration of the mission? They could prove to be helpful."

"_Well, I suppose the more the merrier. If they won't get in your way, then feel free._"

"Thanks." The spy turned to face the curious threesome. "Alright, here's the plan. First, we're going to grab your Pokémon and equipment, and then we are going to the main control room to shut down the base's defenses. You three will follow closely and do whatever I say, got it?" The three teens nodded. "Good, now Ash, use this." She handed him her stun pistol, equipped with a silencer. Ash eyed the gun with a horrified expression.

"A gun? I don't want to kill anyone!"

"I figured you wouldn't want to, that's why this gun is a special stun gun. It has a good amount of ammo and packs a punch. I only got one, so the rest of you will have to improvise. All right, enough talk. Let's go."

"Wait a minute." Ash called, "How do you know us? Who are you?"

Ash couldn't tell, but the woman smiled. "I can't tell you that. Let's just say that I'm one of your fans. Now let's hurry, there's no time to waste!" With that, the spy, Ash, Misty and Brock headed towards the higher levels. The building had five floors. Each floor had from 8 to 10 rooms. First, the gang had to grab their equipment from the third floor, and then they move onto the fifth floor, leading to the main control room. They were currently on the basement, so they had a lot of ground to cover.

Basement – B1

The spy led the group as she stealthily crossed the cell blocks and hallways. It was dark, confined, and perfect for the stealthy spy. Misty punched Brock several times for gawking at the woman's skin tight suit. After telling them to keep quiet, the mysterious girl pressed herself on the wall and scaled until she got to the corner. She hinted Ash to come next to her and look around the corner. When Ash peeked, he saw a rocket taking watch by the door, but he was facing away from them, holding a rifle.

"Perfect. Okay Ash; this is going to be practice." She pointed to the guard. "I am going to show you how to probably restrain your opponent. Afterwards, with the next opportunity, I'll let you do the same, okay?" When Ash nodded, the girl searched around for any cameras or hidden traps. After confirming, she crouched as she stepped lightly yet swiftly towards her prey. Ash watched her cat-like steps, making sure to pay extra attention. This could save his life one day. First, she grabbed and twisted the man's arm that was on the trigger of the gun, and just as quickly with the other arm she took out her combat knife and held it to the guy's neck. Ash and the others were amazed. It happened so quickly they almost couldn't catch her moves. The girl carefully guided the restrained grunt towards the group.

"Arg, who…who the heck are you?" The rocket grunted.

"I am a substitute teacher for these three teens." She answered smoothly, "If you don't tell me what I want to know, I'll give my class hands-on-training on human anatomy."

"Alright, alright, please don't kill me! I got—"

"Yeah, yeah, wife and kids, I don't care about that crap; just tell me what I want to know!" She hissed sharply, tugging him while twisting his arm even more.

"Ow, ow, okay! On the second floor, there is a place where you can shut down the infrared sensors and security cameras. There are two guards inside the room. If you are looking for their equipment, it's on the third floor, but it's locked with a retina scanner. That's all I know."

"Why thank you. Class dismissed." The minute she released him, she slammed the butt of the knife on the back of his neck, knocking him out cold.

"Wow…" Misty stared at the woman in amazement. "That was so cool! Even the lines were awesome!"

"It takes practice." The girl gave Misty the thumbs up, "Alright, let's continue upward." Thankfully, there were no more enemies or traps when they made their way up.

First Floor – 1F

The woman opened the door to the first floor. There were two guards in a large, square hallway. In the middle was a large pillar, creating a circle-like path. "Okay Ash, I'll let you take this one. Do what I did before, but with the gun. Memorize the enemy patterns, and then hold one of them up while stunning the other with your gun. Got it?"

"Yeah, I'll be careful." Ash spun his cap backward so it wouldn't obstruct his vision. The patrol pattern of the guards was simple enough. They walked around the circle in a counter clockwise fashion. They were across from each other, so the guards couldn't see each other. Ash pressed himself on the wall while scaling the sides. He stopped when he was close to the corner, waiting for a guard to pass by. This was exciting! All of sneaking around, hiding in the shadows and waiting to strike, it was like a Pokémon battle. Just then, the guard stopped at his corner and started turning away. This was his chance! Mimicking the girl's early moves, he crouched down and swiftly stepped towards the rocket. When he was close enough, he grabbed and twisted the man's arm while placing the gun under his chin. He pressed the stun gun close to the man's neck to keep him silent. Just like the girl did, Ash slowly stepped back towards the group with his captive. Now all he needed to do was to wait for the other guard.

"Good job Ash…" The girl whispered. Brock raised an eyebrow. The girl's voice seemed very familiar, but he still didn't know who she was. Come to think of it, she didn't even tell them her name. Something caught Brock's eye, causing him to grin widely. The girl was bending over slightly, and there was a piece of dust on her backside…

'Almost…come on…' Ash had the gun ready to take down the second guy who just arrived at Ash's corner. He closed one eye, laid the crosshairs on his target, took aim and—

"EEK! YOU PERVERT!"

_SLAP!_

Ash glanced back at the group and saw Brock on the ground with a dazed look in his eyes, along with a red hand mark on his cheek. Of all the times…

"HEY!" The guard shouted, pointing at Ash. "You're that prisoner!"

"Crap!" Ash shot two stun shots at the guard, but missed horribly. The spy had to act quickly. The guard was going to call for reinforcements! In one motion, she spun from behind Ash and lunged at the man with her rifle.

_CRACK!_

She slammed him on the face with the butt of her weapon. In a quick spin, she twirled and shot a shock bullet at Ash's hostage. The man twitched violently before dropping to the ground. A small, communicator dropped from his hands.

"Whew, that was close!" The spy sighed. Brock soon recovered, still grinning.

"Hey, it looks like you got some more dirt on you…hehehe…" He froze on the spot when the girl aimed at Brock. "I was just kidding!"

"Let's just continue…and Brock, you're in the back behind Misty and Ash." After hiding the bodies, they continued towards the next floor.

Second floor – 2F

As they made it to the second floor, the spy stopped dead in her tracks. She set her goggles to the proper settings and frowned. It was just as she thought. "You guys stay here and keep watch. This floor is littered with infrared sensors, not to mention a few cameras. I am going to go to the camera room to disable the sensors and cameras. When I give you the word, come to my position." The girl stepped up to the starting point and took a deep breath. First, she used her rifle to disable the camera. It was then she expertly traversed over the invisible beams with graceful, acrobatic flips. The gang watched with astonishment as the gifted woman moved like water, smooth and fluent. Just as the girl got past the third door, the door opened. The girl didn't have time to take out her gun and stun him.

Reacting on instinct, Ash took out his stun pistol and shot the man in the chest, stunning him. To finish him off, the spy kicked the door closed, knocking out the rocket. "Great going Ash…" The woman whispered. After an extra minute, she finally reached the door where the camera room was. As a safety precaution, she snuck a small camera under the crack of the door. There were two guards, and each of them was looking at the screen in front of them.

Perfect.

She ran inside and performed a double split kick to their faces, knocking them out. After hacking into the computer, she shut down all of the camera systems and infrared sensors. She came out the door and ushered the others to follow her upstairs.

Third Floor – 3F

Ash was anxious to see his Pikachu again. There was no telling what they would do to him. The girl glanced behind her to see Ash with a serious expression on his face. "Don't worry Ash; I'm sure your Pikachu is fine." She reassured. Ash couldn't guess how it was that she knew him so well, but decided to push his doubts aside until he found Pikachu. Halfway down the corridor, they came across a room that was electronically locked. Next to the locked door was a retina scanner. The spy could try and hack into it, but it was risky since she could trigger an alarm. She needed a "key". After a quick look around the corridor, she checked one of the rooms with her camera and found a guard sitting on a chair. A plan in mind, she told the gang to wait next to the door. When they did so she knocked on the door and stepped away.

The door opened and the rocket saw Ash. "What the? Weren't you in—ACK!"

"Gotcha!" The spy said victoriously, capturing him. She led him to the retina scanner and forced him to open to lock by threatening a knife to the back of his head. After a few moments, the red light above the door turned green, unlocking the door Just like her other victims, she knocked him unconscious. "Alright, go ahead and grab your gear. The Pokémon should be in the next room ahead. I'll keep guard here." The room had a few lockers and containers, carrying different kinds of materials and equipment. Across the room was a door that led to a chamber holding several captured Pokémon. While Misty and Brock gathered their own equipment and Pokéballs, Ash went to find Pikachu. It took a few minutes of searching, but he found Pikachu confined in a cage.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried, kneeling in front of the cage. "Don't worry buddy, I'll get you out!" His fingers searched the cage until his hand landed on a switch. Once he opened the cage, Pikachu leapt joyfully into his arms. Ash gratefully returned the embrace.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu cried.

"I missed you buddy!" Ash placed Pikachu on his shoulder as he stood up. "Alright, I think it's time for a little payback!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, his cheeks crackling with energy. The two left the chamber and met back with Misty, Brock and the spy. Pikachu took a quick whiff and lunged towards the spy. "Pika!"

"Pikachu! Are you doing alright?" The spy asked cheerily.

"Pika pikachu!"

Watching this, Ash had had it. "Hey, wait a minute! First, you know all of our names, and then you knew I had a Pikachu, and now my Pikachu actually knows you? Who are you?" he demanded, surprising everyone.

"Is that any way to thank someone who got you out of jail?" The woman snapped.

"Don't dodge the question! Yes, I am thankful that you got me out of jail, no complaints here, but you seem to know everything about me, and the only thing hiding your identity is that stupid mask and goggles! How can I know whether to trust you or not? You could be some spy from Team Aqua or Magma for all I know!"

Even with the mask and goggles on, everyone knew the girl was perturbed. "For one, you have no choice but to trust me! Who's the one that got you out of jail and your Pikachu back, hm? And another thing, how dare you insult me by relating me to Aqua and Magma! All you need to know is that I saved you, and I'm going to help you get out of here!"

Suddenly, the alarm started going off! Everyone turned to see the rocket the spy knocked out earlier gained consciousness long enough to set off the alarm! The voice in the spy's communicator came to life. It was a different female voice this time. "_What's going on in there? I'm picking up a lot of baddies heading your way!_"

The spy held her chin thoughtfully. "Yeah, I know. I just need to think of a way to buy time…but how?" That was when she thought of a brilliant idea, but she would have to buy some time before it could work. She turned to Ash and the gang. "You guys, I have a plan, but I need your help…"

Outside the door, over a dozen rockets armed with stun clubs waited at the door. When one of the rockets was about to open the door, it suddenly opened, followed with a foot to the face. The rocket stumbled back and growled as the woman slowly stepped out from the door. She looked left, right, and then closed the door behind her. Now things were getting interesting…

"You guys made good time. I've been dying to kick some ass." She grabbed a pair of gloves and slipped them on. The men were about to charge when she flashed her palm at them. "WAIT!" She called. The rockets stopped and stared curiously as she adjusted her headphones and pressed another button on her mp3 player, playing a song fit for melee battling. "Okay, now go."

"GRAAH!" All of the grunts lunged at her, stun sticks ready to strike. The spy slammed her elbow at the one behind her, following with a back spin kick smashing the second grunt's face, and then a thrust punch to the face, knocking out the third. The fourth grunt was about to strike her with the stun weapon when she spun in a dodge and followed up with an uppercut to the jaw. The fifth rocket swiped furiously at her, but with her agility he might as well had been fighting air. Swiftly, she grabbed the stun weapon, slapped him several times in the face with it and then tossed it at his head, knocking him down.

"Is that all you guys got?" She taunted, smashing a grunt's chest with her palm. One of the rockets struck her face with the stun club, knocking off her goggles and revealing her sapphire eyes. She glared menacingly at the man. "Oh, you are so going down for that!" She ducked under him and performed a powerful kick to his chin, sending him high into the air. In a quick move, she grabbed his foot and sent him flying into one of the approaching enemies.

As the fight progressed, more and more rockets started arriving. If this kept up, she was going to have to use her rifle. There would be casualties, which she was trying hard to avoid.

_Knock…knock…knock…_

'About time!' The spy grabbed a grunt's shoulder and flipped over him, heading towards the door. She quickly went inside and closed it behind her. Curious, one of the grunts opened the door. What he met was many pairs of menacing eyes, Pokémon eyes. Calmly, he closed the door and turned to his comrades. He took a deep breath, and…

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" Just as he shouted, the door burst open, Pokémon of all kinds swarmed the entire facility! Within the stampede, Ash and the rest ran towards the next floor.

Fourth Floor – 4F

Just as the gang was about to make a corner leading to the main hallway, the Spy stopped and peeked the corner. Pokémon and rockets armed with stun guns littered the hallway. If she had stepped any further, they were toast. With the Pokémon there, she couldn't use her cloaking device. Curse their enhanced sense of smell!

"You guys turn away and cover your ears!" The spy unclipped a small, capsule like device from her utility belt, bent it and tossed it at the large group. She turned away and covered her ears.

_**BANG!**_

The resounding flash and bang from the capsule blinded and deafened the Pokémon and enemies. Now was the time to act!

"Go, Blaziken!" The spy called, tossing her Pokéball. A tall, red and yellow humanoid chicken emerged from the Pokéball, ready to strike. "Hurry and use Extreme Speed!" As her Pokémon began taking down the Pokémon at breakneck speed, the spy used her rifle to stun as many rockets as she could. Within moments, all of the Pokémon and rockets were subdued. When Ash, Misty and Brock uncovered their ears and peered over the decimation caused by the spy and Blaziken, they were astonished with their power and teamwork. After clearing the hallway, they made it to the next floor.

Fifth Floor – 5F

Thanks to the chaos the Pokémon in the lower floors caused, most of the rockets were too busy trying to keep them from destroying the base. The blue eyed spy and the rest of the group made it to the main control room. The place was very large, taking up most, if not all, of the floor. There were many panels and computers in the room. No one was there. The spy quickly went over to the main controls and was about to shut down the base when something caught her eye, a shadow.

"Crap!" She quickly jumped back, avoiding the crushing force of a red, tall cybernetic suit. On one of its arms was a powerful energy cannon, and the other had sharp grip claws. The back had twin Vulcan guns and on his side was a powerful, wide sword and a laser handgun. The armor was over 12 feet tall. Next to mechanical soldier were two Pokémon, a Nidoking and Kangaskhan, both equipped with strong overlapping armor and steel knuckle guards. The man in the cyber suit laughed haughtily at his opponents. "Well, well, if it isn't the brats. I'm honestly impressed that you got this far, but this is the end of the line."

"That voice….Shiranui!" The spy recalled, grabbing her rifle.

Shiranui glanced at the spy in surprise. "Ah, you must be with the infamous Team Shadow I've been hearing about all over the place. You and that other team have been more than just a thorn in our side. Not even Ash and his friends have caused us more grief."

"Team Shadow?" Ash echoed.

"I doubt you've heard of them since they are so secret, but I can guarantee that you aren't going to be friends with them for long, especially after I destroy you all with my latest creation, the Amerigo! Pokémon, attack them now!" Both the Kangaskhan and Nidoking charged after Ash's group furiously.

Ash was about to take them on with Misty stopped him. "You and the woman go ahead and stop Shiranui. Brock and I will handle the Pokémon."

Ash nodded. "Okay, but be careful." With that in mind, Ash went with the spy to stop Shiranui while Misty and Brock diverted the Pokémon's attention.

Shiranui cocked his energy cannon and aimed at Ash. A rush of powerful energy flowed past Ash as he barrel rolled to the side. The blast from the energy cannon went through the steel floor! One hit and Ash was done for! Ash shot his pistol at Shiranui while Pikachu used thunder attacks, but it was useless.

"Is that all you got? Prepare to die Ketchum!" Shiranui charged the energy cannon again and aimed it at Ash. Suddenly, his aim began to distort. He looked on the head of his weapon and noticed the spy on top, coming out of the cloak. The spy placed a small explosive on the weapon and jumped off. Noticing what she was doing, Shiranui tossed the explosive-ridden cannon away.

_BOOM!_

Shiranui was shaken from the blast, but soon shook it off and aimed his twin Vulcan cannons at the spy. The spy and Ash quickly hid behind some cover before Shiranui let loose a hail of bullets. The Team Shadow agent opened her weapon and changed the ammo. She had to be careful with this ammo. With only five shots to spare, she couldn't risk making a mistake.

"Ash, listen up because I'm only going to tell you once. I need you and Pikachu to direct its attention to you while I go behind it and blast it. Do not be reckless, just buy me some time."

Ash nodded and peeked on the side. Shiranui stopped firing, but kept his aim at them. "You ready Pikachu?" Ash asked.

"Pika!" Pikachu answered.

"Alright, on 3…3!" Both Ash and Pikachu bolted out of the hiding spot, instantly being shot upon by the Gatling cannons. "Pikachu, use agility!" He called. In an instant, Pikachu zipped around speedily.

"You fools! You think such cheap antics will stop me?" The Team Rocket scientist used his grip claws to swipe at Pikachu. The attack was just as quick as Pikachu's move, resulting in an accurate slash. Pikachu flew across the room, scarred by the strong attack.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried. He was about to run towards Pikachu when Shiranui started running towards Ash, blade in hand. The floor cracked under the weight of Shiranui's mech.

"I'll slice you limb for limb!" The blade was raised to slice Ash in half. Just as Shiranui was about to cut him, the agent jumped in front and shot a shotgun burst in the face. The attack forced Shiranui to stumble back slightly, canceling his strike. "You think a mere shotgun is going to affect me? This suit is made from only the toughest materials in the world!" He scoffed.

The agent smirked smugly. "Who said it was a shotgun blast?"

"Hm?" That was when Shiranui noticed strange objects implanted on his suit. It blinked red…oh…crap…

_**BOOM!**_

Shiranui fell down from the multiple explosive at point-blank range. The suit was more than tough enough to survive, but the force knocked him down, making him temporarily immobile. Quickly, Ash ran towards the fallen mech and jumped on it.

_Click-click!_

Ash quickly jumped away before the mech could stand up to swipe at him. The agent stared at Ash inquisitively. "What was that about?"

"I noticed it awhile ago. His suit has five locks on it. He may be nearly invincible outside, but if we could take off the front protection…"

"Then he will lose a lot of defense! Great thinking Ash!" The agent praised. She had only four shots of the explosive shotgun remaining, and with four locks to go, each one had to be precise. Luckily for them, Shiranui didn't seem to notice their plan. The scientist started slashing at them with his sword. The blade was so sharp that it cut cleaning through solid steel. Ash had to jump back constantly just to prevent being sliced in half.

"Pikachu, use skull bash!" Ash called. Pikachu took a few steps back and then lunged at Shiranui with swift speed. The attack struck the mech's arm, temporarily throwing it off balance. Now was the chance! The shadow agent shot another round of explosive bullets at the mech. The explosion once again knocked down Shiranui for a few moments. Just like Ash did, the spy unlocked another lock.

_Click-click!_

She rolled forward and got out of harms way at the nick of time. Seeing they were going to need help, she called forth her Blaziken again. "Blaziken, use Blaze Kick!" Blaziken jumped high in the air and tried to land a kick, but Shiranui was quick to act. Grabbing its leg, he swung it like a rag doll and smacked Ash and the agent with Blaziken then slammed the Pokémon hard on the ground.

"Nice try!" Shiranui scoffed smugly. Blaziken was badly injured, but could still fight.

"Blaziken, use Sky Uppercut!" The agent called out. Immediately, Blaziken broke free of Shiranui's grasp and performed a powerful uppercut. The attack gave the agent a small window of opportunity to shoot another volley at the mech. The mech fell over on its back again, allowing the agent to break another lock.

_Click-click!_

Before she could get off, Shiranui grabbed her with his sharp claws. "Oh…now I get your plan! You're trying to break off my protective shell in order to get to me. Time for you to pay!" The claw was charged with high voltage, shocking the agent.

"AAAH!" The woman couldn't break free, and she was slowly losing strength. Ash noticed her gun dropping on the floor. He quickly grabbed the weapon and slid under the mech. When Ash pulled the trigger, the force was so great it jerked his arm back forcefully. The bullets lodged themselves into the armor and exploded on contact. Since the girl was still being held by Shiranui, she also received some injures. The girl flew from Shiranui's hands and almost slammed into the wall, but Blaziken caught her in time. When Shiranui fell, Ash got on top and broke another lock before leaping off.

_Click-click!_

"Why you little brats…" Shiranui was officially perturbed. They were nothing but trouble for him. Though his armor was strong, the repetitive attacks and explosions made the armor weaker. One more blast like that and his armor would be in critical condition. He could no longer take them lightly. "Prepare to die!" He took out his laser gun and aimed it at Ash.

"Oh no you don't!" Ash shot the last volley at the mech.

"Not this time!" The bullets were repelled by Shiranui's claw. Everyone took cover as the exploding bullets sprayed all over the area and exploded. The Shadow agent paled. That was her last shot! She ran to the spot where Ash hid.

"Ash, that was my last shot! How are we going to knock him down?" She peeked over the edge of the obstacle to see the mech approaching them with daunting steps.

"I wish I could use Snorlax, but he would be mowed down by that stupid gun on his back. If only there was a way to divert his attention or get rid of that gun, Snorlax could knock him down. Hmm…" He looked towards Blaziken and Pikachu who were nearby. After putting two and two together, he thought of a risky, but great idea. "Hey, are you still able to turn invisible?"

"Yeah, but why? Got a plan?" The spy asked. Ash went over the plan with her…

"The time for delay has ended! Die!"

"Not today Shiranui!" Ash immediately shot from the hiding position and shot his pistol at him. Harmless as it was, it only directed Shiranui's attention. The Vulcan cannons blazed at Ash in flurries. Ash winced as a few bullets grazed his body, but he had to keep running!

Shiranui glanced left and right. He was no fool. Ash was obviously trying to cause a distraction while someone else tried to attack him from another direction, but from where…? "Gotcha!" Shiranui exclaimed, catching Blaziken and Pikachu running along side each other, going the opposite direction Ash was. His cannons were about to tear them to shreds when several bullets hailed his targeting screen. "WHAT?" Shiranui looked to see the girl with the rifle shooting at him. How could he have missed that? He swiped at her with his blade, but merely grazed her stomach as she jumped away. The Vulcan cannons didn't work in close range, so Shiranui had to resort to close range tactics. He continued to slash at her, but could not get a mortal strike. His blade was about to strike her down when she used her rifle to block the blade. Even for the girl, the mech's strength was far too overwhelming.

"Blaziken, NOW!" She yelled. Shiranui only had enough time to glance as the fire/fighting Pokémon picked up the electric mouse and tossed him towards the cyber suit. Pikachu quickly latched himself on the mech's head and scampered towards the twin Vulcan cannons.

"Pikachu, use a full powered Zap Cannon!" Ash commanded. Pikachu used every ounce of energy he had and released the most devastating electric attack, wrecking the twin cannons and causing them to explode. The blast sent Pikachu flying, but Blaziken's swift speed enabled it to save Pikachu.

"Curse you, curse you all!" Shiranui turned to charge after Blaziken, but never had the chance.

"Snorlax, use Mega Punch!" Ash called, summoning a giant, overweight Pokémon.

_SLAM!_

The crushing force of the powered punch sent Shiranui crashing down onto the steeled earth. "HIYA!" Ash, who held onto Snorlax's back, jumped over and landed on Shiranui.

_Click-click! _

Steam suddenly protruded from the suit and the front barrier released, revealing Shiranui himself!

_SMASH!_

Shiranui's iron fist slammed into Ash's body, sending him tumbling like a pebble tossed over a lake. The powered down suit stood up. The damage received from the powerful punch combined with the past explosions started to take effect and wore down the mech. "Ugh…never did I think that you all could be that much of a nuisance. I feel it is time to show my true strength!" Shiranui, whose main body was clearly visible and unprotected, pressed a few switched and pulled on a red lever. Instantly, some of the heavier parts and armor dropped off. The more visible parts of the armor lit bright blue. This was the true power of the Amerigo, overboost mode! While the mech had less defense than earlier, its speed made him a deadly opponent. "Laser pods, assemble!" Several, small spheres emerged from the armor and floated around the entire area. "Attack!" The small laser pods began firing weak, but painful rapid fire lasers towards Ash and the group. Though Shiranui no longer had a long range weapon, his laser pods were enough to cover for that. The spy recalled her weakened Blaziken and hid behind some cover along with Ash and Pikachu.

"Not this time!" Shiranui growled, clutching his sword tightly.

_Slice!_

Ash and the group quickly scattered from the hiding spot before the blade sliced it cleanly in half. The laser pods struck the group several times, burning them. No matter what hiding spot they tried to hide in, Shiranui's blade would slice through it, and with his speed and laser pods, the battle had gone from difficult to near impossible. As the battle dragged on, Ash and the spy were getting weaker and slower. Luckily, Ash managed to land a few shots from his Pistol, so Shiranui was in bad shape as well, but his mech was still too powerful.

"I had enough of this! You're mine, Ketchum!" Shiranui roared, blitzing after Ash. There was no way the spy could stop Shiranui in time. Shiranui raised his blade and—

_RAM!_

"GWAH!" The mech was slammed by a head on collision from a long, stone snake Pokémon. The laser pods were about to mow down the Pokémon when several blue ice beams shot at each one, freezing them and making them useless. "Ugh…where did that come from?" It was then Shiranui noticed saw that his two Pokémon were defeated, their armor cracked. Misty and Brock had defeated the Pokémon and now joined the fight. Ash smiled gratefully at them.

"Talk about dramatic timing, but thanks." Ash thanked.

"The fight's not over yet, so save the thanks for later." Brock said, pointing at the mech that was recovering from Onix's head butt attack.

"It is not over yet!" Shiranui declared, going on the offensive. He smashed his clawed fist into Onix's face hard. The Onix was injured, but the attack didn't do too much damage.

"Onix, use slam!" Brock called out. Onix roared loudly as it swung its long tail at Shiranui. Shiranui caught the snake's tail and slammed it repeatedly on the ground.

"Pika-CHU!" Pikachu lunged at Shiranui head on and shocked him with a thunder shock.

"GRAH!" Shiranui grabbed Pikachu and started squeezing him. "Die you little rodent, DIE!"

"No, Pikachu!" Ash cried out, running towards Shiranui. Shiranui tried to slash Ash with the sword, but Ash dodged it and shot at him several times. Shiranui dropped Pikachu from the pain inflicted by Ash's handgun. Ash grabbed Pikachu and jumped away from Shiranui's clutches. "Snorlax, grab Onix and slam it into Shiranui!

"Onix, use Iron Defense!" Brock commanded. Onix hardened its stone skin immense while Snorlax grabbed its tail and swung it like a bat.

**_SMASH! SHATTER!_**

Shiranui was stuck with a direct hit, causing the Amerigo to shatter to pieces. He fell to the ground, unconscious and defeated. Ash's group won the battle!

"Alright, time to get to work." The spy walked over to the main controls for the base. She pressed a few keys and commands. Soon, all the power of the base was gone, leaving it defenseless and dark. "Alright, the place is shut down. Commence clean up." The spy spoke into her communicator.

"_Good job. We'll make sure the Pokémon are taken care of while we mop up the remaining enemy units."_

The girl sighed with relief as she turned to face Ash, Misty and Brock. "Good job today. This wouldn't have been possible if you guys hadn't helped out. Thanks to you, Pewter city is now freed from Team Rocket's grasp. Now we can go home and rest."

"I don't think so…" Everyone gasped as they saw Shiranui stand up wobbly, pointing a gun at Ash. "I won't let any of you get out of here alive!" He pulled out a switch from his coat and pressed the button. All of the alarms blared red, signaling the self-destruction sequence.

"Man…that is just SO cliché!" Brock quipped.

"If anything, I'll personally see to your death first, Ash Ketchum!"

_BANG! BANG!_

"Ah! No…" Ash's eyes widened with shock. The spy leapt in front of him, receiving the shot instead of Ash. Shiranui soon passed out again, glad that he at least took someone out. Ash knelt next to the girl and peered over her wounds worriedly. The bullets struck her leg and shoulder. She was bleeding badly too.

"A…Ash…p-please go, leave me and save yourself…" The fallen girl pleaded. Her voice and consciousness began to fade from weakness.

"After you saved my life? Fat chance! I'm gonna get you out of here!" Ash took her arms and slung it around his neck as he gave her a piggy back ride. "Brock, we need to get out of here, and fast!"

"I'm already on it. Onix, break through that wall!" Brock called. Onix slammed into the wall Brock pointed to, ripping through it with ease. Everyone recalled their Pokémon and rode the Onix out of the installation. Just as they made it out safely, the building started to crumble to dust.

Pewter city gym – Brock's room

Ash laid the mysterious girl on Brock's bed. She was unconscious and bleeding. Something needed to be done. "Brock, can you get me some towels? And Misty, if you could find some bandages that would be great."

"Okay." Both Brock and Misty left to gather the supplies.

"Okay, now let's see…hm?" Ash noticed her stirring slightly.

"Ash…" The girl whispered in her sleep.

Ash frowned. There it was again! Just who was this girl and how did she know him? He couldn't take it anymore; he had to find out. Ash took off the goggles and pulled down the mask. Once he saw her face and brown hair, it hit him like a lightning bolt. Misty and Brock stepped inside the room and almost dropped the supplies in shock. It suddenly made sense. No wonder the girl knew him so well.

The Team Shadow spy who saved them…was May.

"This…can't be real…" Ash said breathlessly. The other two were speechless. May, the 14 year old girl who was as sweet as can be, was a spy from a secret organization. Ash decided for the better to continue working on her wounds and confront her when she wakes up.

One answer led to a million more questions.

* * *

I hope you liked this exceedingly long chapter. If you noticed, I've put music into this chapter, but didn't say what the song was. That's because I feel that everyone has a preferred style of music to suit a situation, so instead, I will put songs that I recommend for the part. This doesn't mean definitely, but just means for that particular scene I chose the music that I felt fit. This is the following in scene order: 

First scene – sneaking spy (Ruthless – Splinter cell, Chaos theory – main theme)

Second scene – Spy vs. Rockets (Fighting – Final Fantasy VII)

Please leave a review and let me know if this music system works for you.


	3. Destined encounter

_**Chapter 3 – Destined encounter**_

Pewter City Gym – Brock's room

A few hours later, May stirred awake in Brock's bed. Remembering she was shot, she quickly sat up in bed, immediately regretting the action when her shoulder throbbed painfully. What was she doing in bed? Where was she? Didn't she die back at the Team Rocket base? It was too many questions too fast. Her eyes began to adjust to the darkness. There was a dresser with a television on top and a few posters of girls, mainly the blue haired police officer, Jenny, and the pink haired nurse, Joy.

Obviously, this was Brock's room.

She suddenly felt something shift next to her. It was Ash, and his head rested on the side of her bed, sound asleep. May's heart took a leap. Ash must have saved her when the Team Rocket base was about to self-destruct. When she moved, she felt pain from her bullet wounds, but not as severe as she expected. The bullets were removed and bandages were wrapped firmly around her shoulder and leg.

'Ash…' May thought happily. She ran her fingers through his soft and messing black hair. Misty wasn't the only one who had her eyes set on a young trainer's heart. Ash was the only thing left for May, and she would do anything for him, even give up her life in an instant. Everything about Ash was amazing to her, but nothing put her heart in a vice grip more than his determination and heart. If only she could have his heart, her life would be perfect.

With a soft sigh, May slowly got out of bed and grabbed her equipment from the top of the dresser. After arming herself, she was about to leave when she turned and glanced at Ash. She leaned towards him and left a kiss on his cheek. "Sweet dreams, my love…" She whispered. After pulling the cover over Ash's shoulders, she left the room.

May was almost out the front door of the gym when a voice called out to her. "Going somewhere so late at night?" She whirled around to see Brock leaning against the wall, staring at her.

"Don't scare me like that! You almost gave me a heart attack!" She chastised.

"At least you know how we felt when we found out who you were. Not exactly who we were expecting. You know, everyone is worried about you, and not just because of your injuries…"

May averted her gaze, feeling guilty about hiding her identity. "I know, but I just can't tell you too much. The only thing I can say is that I am part of an underground covert ops group who save Pokémon and people all over the world. There are times when the police and other people can't help and we have to help those who are sometimes beyond the help of the police."

"Yeah, I think I've heard of your group before. I've also heard about other things, especially about how you—"

"Not everything I do I am especially fond of, but I have given my loyalties to Team Shadow. This isn't something I can back down from easily, and sometimes, we have to do such things, otherwise more people would be killed."

"Hmm…I think I understand. I guess it can't be helped that you have your secrets. Go on ahead to your friends. I'll just tell Ash you couldn't be late for work."

"Thanks Brock." May activated her cloak and escaped Pewter. Brock shook his head dejectedly as he shuffled his way back to bed.

"Why does Ash get all the girls…?"

When morning arrived, Ash couldn't help but feel a little rejected about May leaving without having a chance to talk with her. There were so many questions that needed to be answered. After Brock explained she had to leave, Ash understood, but was still curious. Why was she with Team Shadow? Did she have a secret objective? How come she couldn't tell Ash anything? Nothing made sense! Frustrated as he was, Ash had no choice but to leave his thoughts behind. Hopefully, he would meet May in the future.

Later that morning, Ash and Misty were about to continue their journey to Pallet town when Brock made a startling announcement.

"You're coming with us?" Both Ash and Misty exclaimed.

"Yep! Things are too slow here. Seeing that my breeding center won't have any success here, I might as well go and travel with you guys! It will be just like old times!"

"Sounds great! Welcome aboard Brock!" Ash welcomed, giving him a high five. "No time like the present! Let's go!" Ash, Misty, and their new traveling companion, Brock, left Pewter city and started their travel towards Viridian city. Luckily, they caught a ride that rode all the way to Viridian city, which only took an hour and a half.

Viridian City

As Ash and the gang got off the transit bus, they were amazed at the newly reformed Viridian city. The entire city turned into a gigantic metropolis, skyscrapers as far as the eye could see, and multiple highways and roads scattered across the city.

"Whoa…so huge…" Ash gasped, staring upward at all of the tall buildings.

"Ash, why don't we check out the city for a bit before heading to Pallet town? I'm sure there are some great sights." Brock suggested.

"I've got a better idea! Take a look at this!" Misty pointed to a poster on the side of a building that read _VIRIDIAN_ _MUSEUM: GRAND OPENING_. "It looks interesting. Let's check it out." A plan in mind, the three teens traveled through the city in search for the museum. After several minutes of walking, they found a large, elaborately designed museum with an exterior resembling the ancient buildings of Rome. As they went inside, the gang saw a display case in the middle of the first floor, obviously the main item of the opening exhibition. There was a veil over it, meaning it wasn't time for it to be revealed yet. Seeing nothing better to do until then, the gang ventured the Viridian museum's halls, taking in all of the sights.

After an hour of waiting, everyone, including Ash, Misty and Brock, gathered at the center for the unveiling of the main event. Everyone watched as a short, old man with grey hair and a dark green kimono approached the front of the covered display case and faced the crowd.

"Hey, isn't that Kurt, the famous Pokéball inventor?" Ash whispered to Misty, who nodded.

"It's about to start." Brock gestured Ash to quiet down while Kurt spoke.

"As you all know, the item for today's grand opening is a special and ancient item with many secrets. Recently, I have managed to finally uncover most of its secrets after years of research and hard work. After the discovery of this item's secrets, I have brought it out for all to see. Now, without further ado, allow me to reveal the ancient item of the past!" Kurt grabbed the velvet covering and tore it off. The crowd gasped at the beautiful looking item, but no one was more surprised than Ash.

"No way…that's…the GS ball! Kurt finally figured it out!" Ash exclaimed, excited. After leaving the gold and white Pokéball with Kurt many years ago, he couldn't help but wonder what was so special about it. But now, the secrets were finally discovered. This was getting very exciting!

Kurt began to tell the history of the GS ball. "This artifact is actually well over 5000 years old. This object was not made in the regions we know of today, but made in a place that has yet to be discovered by man. What we have found out however, is that GS stand for Guardian's Seal. It was said that many years ago, a great and powerful wizard sealed the souls of five evil guardians who threatened to destroy the entire world! It has not been determined whether this was true or not, but the fact still remains that this ball cannot be opened. Not only that, but it has been confirmed that this is the first official Pokéball ever created!"

Ash, Misty and Brock stared at the GS ball, amazed. Never did they imagine they had carried evil souls with them the entire time. What if those evil guardians got out and tried to destroy the world like they tried to do in the past? Would Ash be able to beat them? But then…what if it was just a legend? It _was_ over 5000 years ago, so maybe the danger was over. After the exhibition, Ash and the gang went to meet Kurt, who was pleasantly surprised.

"Well, well, it has been years since we've met, Ash. How have things been?"

"They've been really good. I'm glad you finally figured out the GS ball." Ash said.

"Yeah, and it's all thanks to you kids for giving it to me. Say, how about I treat all of you guys for lunch as a thank you gift?"

"Sounds great!" Everyone chimed.

_CRASH!_

Everyone turned towards the front exits and stared in horror. Multiple men in red, hooded uniforms rushed in, carrying weapons and sending Pokémon in to take out the security guards swiftly. Ash and the gang knew who they were.

Team Magma.

Ash was about to grab his Pokéball when a several rings flew through the air, immobilizing Ash and everyone's arms.

"Now, now, we wouldn't want you to call out your Pokémon would we?" A Team Magma administrator sneered. He noticed Ash's Pikachu next to Ash, his cheeks cackling with electricity. "Tch, yeah right…"

_Clink!_

"Pika!" Pikachu was caught in a steel ring similar to Ash's. Pikachu tried to use a Thunder Shock attack, but the ring absorbed it and shock Pikachu instead.

"No, Pikachu!" Ash cried, kneeling next to him. He glared at the Team Magma supervisor. "What do you guys want?"

"That is none of your business Ketchum. We knew you would be here, so we came prepared. As long as your arms are bounded, you can't summon your Pokémon, leaving you and your friends helpless." The administrator turned to one of his subordinates. "Make sure everyone's hands and arms are tied. Scour the place and take whatever you can."

"Sir!" The grunt and several others went to their duties, tying everyone's hands with rope and scouring the place. Ash gritted his teeth angrily. He couldn't let Team Magma get away with this. He had to break free and save everyone…but how?

Viridian Police HQ

A man in his late 30's sat in his office, his feet lazily placed on top of his desk. He had a trimmed black mustache and neatly cut black hair. The man in the beige trench coat sighed in sheer boredom. There haven't been any exciting missions within the past month. If something didn't happen soon, he would most likely be bored to death.

_Bling!_

"Ah, finally!" The man glanced at the laptop in front of him and checked the message. When he read the message, he grinned. A new mission has come up! He picked up a nearby phone and dialed one number. After three rings, someone answered the phone.

"_What's up Boss man? Did a new mission finally come up?_"

"Yeah! I will brief you all on the details. Come to meeting room ASAP."

"_You got it!_"

_Click_!

Boss man stood up and stretched his arms. Finally, some action! After walking the halls of the police HQ, Boss man stepped in a dimly lit room. Five teens sat at their designated chairs, waiting to hear their mission details. "Alright, here's the situation." A green wire frame map lit the side of the wall, revealing a map of a large building. "1 hour and 30 minutes ago, Team Magma took over the Viridian Museum. Currently, Team Magma has captured over 100 kiddies, including some sissy staff members and their pinch-a-penny rental cops. There are 50 live ones and each have about two to three Pokémon, obviously all fire, dark and rock types. Magma's weaponry includes peashooters, hula-hoops, and breadsticks. They got five guys chillin' on the roof and some taking guard at several of the obvious points of entry. Needless to say, we're dealing with a bunch of amateurs who don't know who they're dealing with. Your mission is simple…"

"We just have to bust in and kick ass, right?" One of the teens interrupted rudely.

"Quit interrupting me, moron!" Boss man chided. The teen who spoke up sank in his seat, pouting. "Anyway, first off, these guys aren't about to pull anything hasty, not at least until they got whatever they wanted. They got everything covered inside, but we will strike them where they least expect. We'll be knocking on their front door. There will be three groups. First, you three…" He pointed to the three who sat in the middle. "You will go through the front and bust their chops. Then you…" He pointed to the teen on the far left. "You'll be keeping the front guarded in case the goons chicken out and run home for their mommies."

"Oh, oh, can I use my precious? Pretty please?" The girl begged. Boss man nodded.

"That's what I'm counting on. Alright, that means you'll be back up in case we're playing against a loaded deck." He said to the last one on the far right. "Now, hit em' hard and fast and show them who they're messing with! Grab your presents and birthday suits kids because we're going to crash a party!" All of the teens eagerly left the room to suit up in their gear and weapons.

Team Shadow's Arch Angel

May walked within the high-tech halls of the Arch Angel. As she stepped up to a door, the automatic doors opened up for her. She made her way towards the middle of the room, where an older woman around her mid twenties and two girls around May's age resided. They stood at the four sides of a table and stared at the holographic and well detail image of the Viridian museum.

"Alright, if everyone's here, let us get started. Recently, the Viridian museum was captured by Team Magma. It would seem that Team Magma caught wind about the GS ball and now they want it for themselves. May, you will lead a three-man cell into the installation and retrieve the artifact before they can escape with it. There has been some chatter over the information network about _them_ arriving at the same location, so you must be on your best guard."

"Right." May nodded.

"There are 50 Team Magma soldiers. Each member has at least two Pokémon, mainly consisting elements of fire, dark, and rock. The weapons analysis detected the use of capture rings, M9 pistols, and stun staves. May, your team will infiltrate from the roof. There are five guards, so they should be sniped upon entry. Make your way down the levels until you reached where the GS ball is located. The enemy has a small defense force on the second floor, so it is up to your team to make it through them. We will be nearby for back up in case of any trouble, or for extraction. Any questions?" No one answered. "Good, now suit up and grab your weapons. Depart for the mission immediately after."

"Ma'am!" May and her team saluted by placing a curled fist over their chest, then left for the armory.

Viridian Museum

2 hours had past since the museum was taken over. During that time, Ash had been trying to think of a way to break free and defeat Team Magma. There were three guards watching over him, Misty and Brock, so they couldn't do anything without them knowing. He watched as one grunt approached the Team Magma administrator and whispered in his ear. The administrator's eyes widened with fear when he heard the news.

"Team Nova is on their way here?" The administrator shouted in surprise. Every single Team Magma member turned and faced their leader, a look of horror plastered on their faces. "Alright men, change of plans! Prepare for immediate departure! Hurry!" Ash watched as everyone was rushing around, gathering whatever they could. The Magma team leader broke the glass of the GS ball's display case and snatched it. He glanced at Ash's group and thought of a way to buy time in case he didn't get out fast enough.

A hostage.

He grabbed Misty's ring and pulled her next to him. "You're going to be our ticket out of here!"

"Let. Go!" Misty struggled, but the man jerked her forcefully, throwing her off.

"NO, MISTY!" Ash and Brock shouted. They tried to tackle the Magma team leader, but two grunts tackled them first, pinning them on the ground.

"Nice try. We'll be taking your precious girlfriend with us. It's too bad you won't ever see her again, or leave here alive. Do it!" The team leader ordered the grunts. The two grunts pulled out their pistols and aimed at Ash and Brock.

"ASH, NO!" Misty cried out. Ash and Brock closed their eyes, expecting the worst.

_BANG, BANG!_

The sound of two guns dropping resounded through the now silent museum. "Oh, I'm sorry; did we come at a bad time?" A teenage boy said cockily. Everyone turned to see the owner of the voice. The boy looked to be 15 years old, wearing a blue trench coat with long black gloves, muscle shirt/turtle neck combination, pants and boots. His left arm was equipped with a red and black device that resembled an arm guard. On his wrist and ankles were spiked, silver bracelets and a pair of steel, silver goggles rested on top of his long, thick, silver spiky hair. A white line streaked across the boy's face. His golden eyes gleamed with excitement as he twirled his pistol expertly and blew off the smoke coming from the head.

Two other people were next to him. One of them was a 14 year old white haired boy, wearing a black sweat suit with red and yellow outlines, red and black cross trainers, yellow fingerless biker gloves, and a black headband. Over his ruby eyes were a pair of prescribed glasses, indicating high intelligence and also seemed to fit him perfectly. The 15 year old, muddy brown haired teen in the middle wore a dark purple long sleeve shirt and dark teal pants tucked into his long, beige boots.

When Ash saw the browned haired teen, his jaw dropped, nearly cracking the ground. "Gary?"

Gary noticed Ash and had the same reaction he did. "Ash? What are you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing!"

The Magma squad leader gritted his teeth. He really didn't expect them to show up so soon. His mission had just gotten extremely complicated. Team Nova was notorious among the Team Rocket, Aqua, and Magma ranks as a destructive and very dangerous squad. Those who faced Team Nova never made it without a scratch…if they did at all. It would probably take a miracle for him to make it out in one piece.

"Brendan, how strong are their Pokémon?" Gary asked the white haired 14 year old. Brendan pulled out a small device that resembled a Pokédex and scanned several of the Pokémon. Brendan's face was contorted in disgust after reading the numbers, fixing his glasses out of habit.

"Only level 35 to 40. They're nothing but wimps."

"How dare you insult our Pokémon!" One of the Magma members shouted, incensed. The Magma subordinate sent out two Pokémon, a black dog and a red lizard. "Go, Houndoom, Charmeleon , go and take them down!" The two Pokémon charged at the three boys, baring their fangs.

Gary sighed, feeling disappointed. "Do your thing Wes."

"Will do!" The silver haired teen unclipped a Pokéball from his belt and tossed it at the opposing Pokémon. "Come on out, Espeon!" He summoned a purple, cat like Pokémon with long ears and a tail that forked at the end. A red jewel was embedded in Espeon's forehead. "Use Psybeam on Charmelon!" Espeon shot an invisible, psychic wave that was powerful enough to knock out Charmeleon in one attack!

"Hah, fool! Don't you know psychic attacks can't harm dark Pokémon? Now you are at my mercy! Houndoom, hurry and use Crunch on Espeon!" The Magma peon called out. Houndoom's jowls were inches from Espeon.

"Teleport and double team." Wes called out calmly. Espeon disappeared just as Houndoom's attack was about to connect and reappeared as several Espeons. Houndoom looked back and forth between the dozen Espeons, unsure of who to target first. "While it's confused, solidify and use faint attack." Espeon powered itself up and its copies and slowly faded from sight. One by one, the copies reappeared and slammed into Houndoom with a tackle attack. After the final blow, Houndoom collapsed to the ground, defeated.

"Ah, no!" The Magma grunt recalled his two defeated Pokémon. How could he be so easily defeated by one Pokémon?

"Oh, what were you saying about me being at your mercy?" Wes taunted. He saw three Magma guards taking out their pistols. With insane speed, Wes took out his pistol and shot the guns out of their hands. The gun shots sounded like one, but were actually three. "Hey, if you want to make this a rupture battle, that's fine by me."

Brendan caught something in the distance by the stairway. It was almost invisible, except for the slight distortion in the visual detail. That only meant one thing…

"WES, LOOK OUT!" Brendan knocked Wes over, barely avoiding the sniper bullet that whizzed past his face. In mid air, Brendan took out his special pistol and shot at the source. When the bullet embedded itself on the wall, a small EMP wave emanated from it, disabling the cloaking devices on the three intruders. Ash couldn't believe his eyes. He immediately knew who the intruders were, one of them being May. What really surprised him were the two other girls next to May, aiming their rifles over the banister. One of the two 15 year old girls had bluish green hair and brown eyes, while the other had auburn hair and light blue eyes.

"You have got to be kidding me! That's Duplica and Melody!" Ash gasped.

"What? Are you serious?" Brock turned to see it was the said girls. "It is! They are also with Team Shadow?"

"Team Shadow?" The Magma leader held tightly onto Misty's ring and the GS ball. His only hope now would be to escape while Team Nova's attention was directed to Team Shadow. "Let's go, NOW!" He commanded. He shoved Gary out of the way as he and several of his escort guards left the museum. Just as the Magma leader left, a big shootout erupted between the three teams.

"No, MISTY!" Ash tried to follow him, but Brock knocked him down in time to avoid a ricocheting bullet.

"Get down! This is a gun fight! We've got to go by this carefully!" Brock said.

"But they got Misty! We've got to save her!"

"I know Ash, but we've got to stay alive if we are going to save Misty. Let's try to reach Gary without getting shot first. We need to get out of these stupid rings first!"

No matter how much Ash wanted to save Misty, he knew Brock was right. Ash, Brock and Pikachu carefully, but quickly made their way towards Gary. Gary gave the hand signal to Brendan, telling him to protect Ash. Brendan ran towards Ash and slipped on a pair of specially designed gloves.

"Protective force!" An electromagnetic shield was erected in front of Brendan's hand, redirecting any bullets that were heading towards Ash. After safely guiding him to safety, Brendan helped to break Ash, Brock and Pikachu free of the rings. "Are you guys alright?"

"Yeah, thanks." Ash nodded. He was about to run towards Misty when Wes grabbed his shoulder.

"Not so fast! Don't worry, that girl will be fine…"

"How can you be so sure?" Ash asked.

"Because our partner is out there waiting for them."

Just then, Ash felt a slight tremor in the earth. "What on earth is that?" He asked, bewildered.

Wes grinned widely. "That would be my partner…"

Outside, the Team Magma leader stood stone still, sweat-dropping in fear, along with a very frightened Misty. In front of him stood a 25 foot tall blue, high tech humanoid robot, pointing at them with a thick battle rifle as well as two missile launchers armed and ready. "Stop right there mister Team Lava man!" A young girl's voice was heard through the mech's speakers.

"It's Magma, not lava!" The Magma leader corrected.

"Well whatever you are, can you please let go of the nice little hostage so I can shoot you?"

Misty sweat-dropped profusely. She called that negotiating?

"Yeah right! Like I'm going to let go of my hostage! Back off or she gets it!" The Magma boss held a gun to Misty's head.

"I'm sorry you feel that way mister, but you have until I count to zero to comply, or I will be forced to convince you otherwise. 5…"

The Magma leader grinned. The girl was obviously bluffing. There was no way she would shoot him with a hostage!

"4…3…"

It was then he remembered the stories he heard about a crazed little girl who loved machines and weaponry with a passion. That same girl used a high-powered rocket launcher at a group of Team Magma members during a hostage situation similar to this one. What were the chances this was the same, crazy mech pilot?

"2…1…" The girl loaded a clip into the chamber of her rifle. Everyone including Misty was very afraid at this moment. This girl had to be bluffing! There was no way she would disobey priority and…

"0!" The girl unleashed a huge payload of bullets and missiles at the group, who blanched in horror.

_BOOM!_

Multiple Magma members were tossed into the air, courtesy of the explosions caused by the girl's missiles. Misty nearly fainted from shock. That girl was nuts! After the hellish bombardment, half of the Magma escort guards were out of commission. The mech pilot was about to fire again when a hail of missiles struck her mech. The Magma boss looked up and saw several black jets circling the area. Never was he so gratefully for Team Shadow's intrusions. He hurriedly escaped to his extraction point and drove off in the truck, along with the few remaining escort guards and Misty in tow.

Inside the museum, May hid behind some cover from the rain of gun shots. She really didn't expect to see Ash so soon, but she couldn't worry about him now, Team Nova was here and being an extreme pain as usual. Thankfully, her sources detected a mech in front of the installation and sent a squad of bombers to take out the mech. The giant robot was putting up great resistance though, and according to her recent message, Team Magma still had possession of the GS ball! Times were troubling.

May turned to Duplica, who was peeking off the side and shooting with her automatic rifle. "Duplica, Team Magma has the GS ball! Can you and Melody take care of the situation here while I go ahead?"

Melody tossed a stun grenade down the stairs, taking out 5 Magma grunts. "Sure thing. We'll keep Team Nova busy with suppression fire while you go through the back. Good luck."

"Thanks." May snuck under the cover of the upper level banisters while Duplica and Melody opened fire upon the enemies on the lower level.

With Ash and Team Nova, Gary received a call from his female partner in the mech. "Rui, what's wrong? Didn't you catch the bad guys?" Gary asked.

"_Sorry, but Team Shadow sent a bomber squad after me and—AHH! Get away! GET AWAY! BAD MISSILE! BAD!_" Explosions could be heard in the background, causing Gary to sweat-drop. "_Ugh…I'm going to be busy with these guys for awhile. Me and Ritchie are doing all we can to keep them at bay._"

"Alright. You two be careful out there."

_Click_!

Gary turned to Wes. "Wes, Rui is too busy intercepting Team Shadow to catch the guys. Take Ash along with you to catch up with them. Me, Brock and Brendan will take care of the civilians and Team Shadow. Team Magma is almost completely eliminated, so there isn't much more to worry about."

"Right. Come on Ash!" Wes hurriedly guided Ash outside. The streets of Viridian were a mess. Cars and buildings suffered a lot of damage from Rui's mech and Team Shadow's artillery fire. While running with Wes, Ash could've sworn he saw his old friend Ritchie on the rooftops, summoning his Pokémon and shooting at the planes with a sniper rifle. Rui was jumping from rooftop to rooftop, avoiding missiles and shooting her own at the swift jets. Ash couldn't believe the chaos that was going on. Most of his friends were not only fighting each other, but were from secret organizations he didn't even know existed! It was enough to make his head spin.

"Here we are." Wes said, pointing to a well detailed and impressive motorcycle. Ash whistled when he saw the neon blue bike.

"Nice!" Ash complemented. Wes slapped on the back of his bike and flipped onto his seat. Suddenly, the bike turned on.

"_Good afternoon Master Wes_." A female, computer voice said.

"What's up EVA?" Wes greeted. Ash sat on the back of the motorcycle.

"EVA? What's that?" Ash asked.

"This is our super computer, EVA. She's the coolest computer you'll ever meet; complete with a kick butt A.I. and other cool features. Alright EVA, we got someone to chase, so let's not waste time!"

"_Yes Master Wes. Any preferences?_"

"Of course! Track 39, loop it."

"_Yes Master Wes. Now playing 'The chase of highway'._" Fast paced, highway chasing music started to play from the bike's stereos. Wes slapped his fist together and then gripped the bike handles tightly.

"Now that's more like it! You better hang on Ash; this is going to be one wild ride!" Ash took Wes's advice and held onto his waist.

_**VROOM!**_

The bike shot off like a rocket. Pikachu nearly flew off Ash's shoulder due to the exceedingly fast speed.

The chase was on!

* * *

Things are getting exciting aren't they? The excitement is only beginning. Prepare for the next exciting chapter – the big chase on the Viridian highway! The next chapter is going to knock your socks off with a shocking secret revealed! Review if you like this story! Many thanks for reading! 

Song – the start of the chase (The chase of highway – Final Fantasy 7, advent children)

Note: This song will continue on for most of the next chapter.

Note 2: Rui's mech can be related to the Evas in neon genesis evangelion. Think of it as Eva unit 1.


	4. The chase of highway

**_Chapter 4 – The chase of highway_**

Viridian city highway

"WAAAA!" Ash held onto Wes for dear life, almost falling off the bike due to wind resistance. The speed they were going had to be at least 70 mph. The raven haired trainer almost fainted from the daredevil stunts Wes pulled off.

"EVA, how far is Team Magma?" Wes asked, driving between pedestrians and cars.

"_The Team Magma transporter is currently 30 miles away. The recommended route is through the main highway, V - 14._" The computer suggested.

"What's our ETA?"

"_1 minute_."

"Let's make it 30 seconds!"

_VROOOOM!_

Wes's bike shot forward, exceeding over 90 mph. While driving, Wes saw the entry route leading to highway V – 14 and took it. There was a nexus of different routes and highways, all on different levels. With the speed the two were going, they should have reached the crooks by now.

"Wes, look!" Ash pointed to the right. Wes glanced over and noticed a truck moving at a very high speed, followed by 12 Magma grunts on motorcycles. That was Team Magma alright, but there was a problem. "How are we going to get them? They are at the lowest level while we are at the highest! Unless we somehow survived the jump from this height, we'll never catch them." Wes tossed Ash a look that sent shivers down his spine.

"Great idea! Hold on tight!" Wes made a sharp turn and drove for the side of the highway! Ash and Pikachu blanched.

"ARE YOU CRAZY? WE CAN'T SURVIVE THAT!" Ash yelled, panicking.

"You won't know unless you try!"

_WHOOSH!_

"HOLY CRRRRRAAAAPPPP!" Ash screamed as he and Wes freefell from the highest level down to the lowest, which were at least 150 feet apart. Wes landed and bounced off a truck passing by on one of the middle levels, and then landed on the lower level. Ash felt his stomach do flip flops as he dropped from the extreme height. Wes and Ash landed right behind the Team Magma escort guards.

"Hey Ash, are you alright?" Wes glanced behind to see Ash's face white as a ghost, fainted from the big drop. One good shock from Pikachu was enough to bring Ash back to reality. "Look sharp and listen up because I'm only going to tell you once! We're gonna have to take out all the escort guards before we reach the truck. I want you to get ready and hang on, because once we reach the truck, you gotta go inside and rescue the girl. I'll be back up in case we get any interference. Got it?"

"Yeah, let's go!" Ash prepared himself as Wes drove next to the first biker grunt. The grunt saw Wes and tried to ram into him, but when he got close, Wes kicked him in the face and rammed into him. The enemy biker fell off the bike, defeated. Wes drove up and met with two more grunts, one on each side.

"EVA, go on auto-pilot! Maintain current speed and keep it smooth!" Wes commanded, taking out his two pistols.

"_Roger._" The bike switched itself to auto pilot.

"Ash, I'm going to hijack one of the enemy vehicles. If you get attacked, have Pikachu help you out!"

"Okay." Ash watched as Wes leaned to the side, causing the bike tilted to the right. The Magma biker drove to ram into Ash when Wes jumped off the bike and kicked him in the face, knocking him off and seating himself on the bike. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash pointed to the biker on the right. Pikachu shocked the enemy biker and sent him crashing into a wall. Wes drove next to Ash and gave him the thumbs up before driving ahead.

Three more bikers slowed down to Wes's located and pulled out their pistols. Wes deflected the bullets with his arm guard as he maneuvered between the three Magma bikers who were circling around him.

"Thunderbolt!" Ash called suddenly. Pikachu shocked the biker behind Wes, causing the grunt to lose control and fall off. The remaining two grunts sandwiched Wes and started fighting him in hand to hand combat. Even with two grunts on each side, it was too easy for Wes.

_SMACK!_

The enemy biker clutched his face in pain when Wes punched him with his armored fist. Quickly, Wes shot the front tire of the enemy's bike, causing the grunt to crash. The last grunt tried to kick Wes, but the silver haired teen grabbed his foot and pushed him off the bike.

Two more grunts slowed down to stop Wes and Ash. This time, they were armed with stun staves and guns. Wes tried to dodge some of the gun shots, but a few grazed his cheek and struck the front wheel of his bike. He quickly jumped off and landed on his regular bike before the previous one crashed. The two Magma bikers started shooting at Wes as they close in on him.

"EVA, disengage the auto-pilot and unlock my blitz blade!" Wes commanded. The auto-pilot sign on the screen switched off and a strange looking sword appeared on the side of the bike. The blade was around 4 feet long and looked like two katanas melded into one, the blades facing away from each other and was two-pronged. When the Magma grunts got close, they sheathed their guns and pulled out their stun staves. "Here they come! Ash, take care of the one on my right! I call left! Use this!" Wes handed Ash his left arm guard. Ash accepted and equipped the arm guard. "Whatever you do, don't lose it!"

"Okay!" Ash nodded. The two bikers came at Ash and Wes from opposite sides. The enemy on the right tried to attack Wes, but Ash blocked the attack and shoved the grunt back, throwing him off balance. "Now Pikachu!" Pikachu launched a Thunder Shock attack on the grunt. The attack did some damage, but would take one more direct hit to defeat him. Ash and the grunt continuously exchanged blocks and blows with each other.

_SMASH!_

"Agh!" The grunt felt the full force of Ash's armored first and staggered.

_ZAP!_

The biker felt the shock of Pikachu's attack and fell off the bike.

With Wes, his opponent's staff was no match for Wes's sword. After several slashes, Wes smashed the grunt in the face with the sword's hilt, knocking the man off. Wes drove ahead, trying to catch up to the truck. The four remaining escort guards formed a line barrier in front of Wes, denying him entry. Wes cursed inwardly. He needed someway get past the wall, but he couldn't see how besides blasting his way through, but it would take more time than they had and too many casualties, which he was trying very hard to avoid.

It was then Wes noticed a truck ahead of the bikes, carrying a plethora of tree logs. Ash paled when he saw the sinister look on Wes's face.

"No…you couldn't...you wouldn't…!" Ash gasped when he saw Wes pull out his gun and aim at the truck.

"Trust me; I haven't been alive this long without knowing how to get through many situations. I know what I'm doing." Wes pulled the trigger.

_BANG!_

The bullet whizzed past the bikers and struck one of the straps holding the logs in place. The straps snapped off and unleashed a wave of logs, successfully taking out the blockade of bikers. Wes sweat-dropped when he remembered a small detail he had forgotten. "Err…Ash? I think you might want to keep your head down…"

…uh oh…

The logs bounced towards Wes as he maneuvered the best he could to avoid getting crushed by the logs. Three logs flipped in the air and aimed at Wes.

_Slash! Slash! Slice!_

Wes used his sword to cut a path through the logs as he drove. He cursed aloud when he saw the path to the truck was cut off by the logs and traffic. There was a highway leading to the second level next to the truck's path, and Wes took it.

"What are you doing? The truck's going to get away!"

"Not on my watch!"

_VROOOM!_

Wes speed past the remaining debris of logs and made it to the second level. Ash and Pikachu glanced at the side where they could clearly see the truck. "We're not going to jump again, are we?" Ash asked nervously. He sighed in relief when Wes shook his head.

"Nope…you are! Good luck saving the girl!"

"WHA—"

_BOING!_

"WAAAAAA!"

"PIIIIKKKAAA!" Both Ash and Pikachu screamed as the back seat of the bike jettisoned them in the air towards the truck.

"I HOPE YOU SURVIVE THE FALL!" Wes yelled to Ash. Ash managed to land on the truck along with Pikachu, a little dazed from the drop.

"ARE YOU CRAZY? WHAT IF YOU MISSED?" Ash yelled. He could see Wes shrug in the distance.

"THEN THAT WOULD'VE REALLY SUCKED FOR YOU!"

Ash and Pikachu face-faulted. Wes was one guy Ash wouldn't trust with a delicate situation. "Ah! Misty!" Ash remembered. He crawled to the back edge of the truck and saw an opening through the back. "Ready Pikachu?"

"Pika!"

"Alright, let's do it!" Ash lowered himself down and landed inside the back of the truck. There, he saw Misty and the Magma administrator. "Let Misty go, NOW!" He demanded.

"Ash! You're here!" Misty said.

"Hmph, not for long! I'll take you out once and for all, right here, right now!" The Magma administrator pulled out his gun and aimed at Ash.

_ZAP!_

"Gah!" The Magma boss dropped the gun that was electrified by Pikachu's Thunder Shock. Ash immediately charged at him with his armored fist raised.

_CLANG!_

"WHAT?" Ash was parried by the administrator's personal stun staff, which was made of a material tougher than the other staves.

"I'm not that easy to take down kid! I'll beat you to a pulp! HAAA!" The Magma boss charged at Ash.

Outside the truck, Wes was still on the highway beside Ash's position. He had been trying to find an entry route to lead him closer to truck and support Ash. A good few miles ahead was a bridge and if Wes didn't act soon, he would miss his chance. He could try jumping again, but not even he would test his luck that many times in a single day.

_VROOOM!_

"WHAT THE?" Wes nearly skidded off the road when three bikers whizzed past him. They were all in black uniforms, riding black bikes. One of the bikes in particular was very detailed and equipped with several close range and far range weapons. Wes cursed his luck. Team Shadow was here! He pressed a few buttons on his bike and unhooked a blue arm guard. After equipping it, he prepped his blade and prepared to fight for his life.

_WHOOSH!_

The bikers drove off the highway and landed behind the Magma truck. Team Shadow was after the truck! "Not today!" Wes drove off the edge as well and landed on the pavement with a bump. Two of the Team Shadow bikers unhooked pistols and aimed at Wes. "Crap!" Wes quickly pressed a button on his arm guard, creating a small, blue energy shield in front of the arm guard. Bullets bounced of the shield and sword as the two gunners shot at Wes. The two gunners circled Wes as they shot at him from all angles, forcing Wes to watch and guard all 360 degrees. "GRAAAH!" Wes drove to the side at one of the gunners.

_CLANG!_

"Crap!" Wes's blade was deflected by the Shadow agent's own personal sword. The two continued to clash as the second gunner shot at Wes.

_SMASH!_

"GAH!" The close range biker was struck in the face by Wes's arm guard. The enemy managed to recover and rammed his bike into Wes, causing him to almost fall off the bike.

"Why you little…!"

_Slash!_

Wes's sword sliced through the side of the enemy bike, cutting off the vital points. The Team Shadow driver jumped off the bike before it crashed against the side walls of the highway, exploding into a ball of flame. Wes sheathed the blitz blade and pulled out his twin pistols from his coat. He and the second Team Shadow rider exchanged bullets as they dodged traffic and bullets alike. Even for Wes this battle was proving difficult. Team Shadow had highly trained agents, and if he didn't watch his back, death would come swiftly. After a minute of shooting, Wes had enough of it. He unlocked a secret compartment and pulled out a high tech, blue and black, compact carbine rifle. When his finger pressed on the trigger, the gun started glowing blue and blue energy started withdrawing inside the barrel.

_ZAM!_

Wes's carbine shot a light blue laser stream through the enemy's bike, shutting it down. The Team Shadow agent jumped out of the bike in time before the bike combusted. Wes grinned wickedly. No one could mess with the Wes Edition Carbine! He set his sights on the leader, which to his pleasure was a woman.

May glanced back at Wes and pursed her lips. She should have known her two escort riders would not have been able to keep Wes at bay for long. Team Nova was one of the powerful military forces known, and Wes, along with the other five, was the elite officers of the team. While members of Team Shadow were skilled, only her team would be able to take out Team Nova's finest!

Wes drove along side of May. "Hey sexy! If you pull over, I'll be sure to give you a _real_ ride on the Wes express!"

May tossed him a flat look. "The only thing that's going to be riding is my foot in your face!" She almost succeeded in doing so when Wes blocked the kick.

"Hmm…nice pair of legs you got…" Wes eyed her legs as he continued to hold it in place.

_WAM!_

"Agh!" Wes seethed in pain when May drove her still clutched foot into his face. He had no choice but to gain some distance and prepare himself for a fight!

_SMACK!_

"Arg!" Ash stumbled back but regained footing. The battle was getting intense. Both were equally match, and because of the close corners, Pikachu couldn't risk shocking the Magma team leader without hurting Ash. Pikachu was busy helping Misty while Ash fought against the Magma boss.

_Punch!_

_Kick!_

_Shove!_

_Uppercut!_

The two continued to exchange blows, neither person quitting. Though the Magma leader was older and more experienced battle wise, he was surprised with how Ash was standing up to him so well.

"Kid, I hate to admit it, but you're quite skilled. It's a shame you're not within our ranks." The administrator complimented.

"Right, and be a jerk like you? I'll pass! HA!" Ash thrust his armored fist into the administrator's stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

_WAM!_

Ash sent him slamming against the side of the truck with a roundhouse kick. He was about to pursue the administrator for the final blow when he heard a piece of metal fall to the ground. When he looked, he smiled with relief. Pikachu managed to set Misty free.

"ASH!" Misty ran to Ash and embraced him tightly.

Ash blushed furiously. "Um…hey Misty! I'm glad you're alright." He heard Misty gasp when she saw his face.

"Your face! It's all bruised up!"

"Don't worry about this. This doesn't hurt at all!" Ash waved off, trying to reassure Misty. The sound of a bullet loading into the chamber of a gun caught Ash and Misty's attention.

"I'm not down yet fools! You may've gotten your girlfriend back, but this battle is not over!" The administrator staggered as he stood on his feet, panting heavily. It took almost all of his strength just to stand up.

Ash groaned as he rolled his eyes. "Haven't you people realized it yet? She is not my girlfriend! It's not that hard to remember!"

"You don't have to say it like that!" Misty shouted.

"How else can I say it? No one has noticed it yet! Who on earth would want to date a mallet-wielding, scrawny tomboy?"

"How about I take out my mallet and—"

"STOP IGNORING ME!" The Magma boss shouted angrily, catching Ash and Misty's attention again.

"Geez man, cool it a bit. We can all hear you quite clearly." Ash said.

"Grrr….that's it! EAT THIS!"

_BANG!_

"Gah!" Ash got a direct hit from the gun in his chest. His back slammed on the side of the truck and he slid down.

Misty gasped in horror. "No, ASH!" She knelt next to him, on the verge of crying.

"You're next!" The administrator took aim and—

**ZAP!**

"GWAH!" The boss suffered a devastating Zap Cannon attack from the angered Pikachu. The blast blew him through the door that led to the driver seat. The Magma team leader fell unconscious soon after.

"Arg….my chest…" Ash could feel his life slipping away. That gun shot must have hit some vital organs. In the corner of his eye, he saw something rolling towards him. It was… "The GS ball!" He grabbed the ball and placed it in his pocket.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu cried, running next to him.

"Ugh…don't worry, I'll be fine…" Ash lied. He didn't want to worry his friends too much. Even though they are bound to find out sooner or later, he wanted them to at least be happy while he's still alive.

_SCREECH!_

"Whoa!" Everyone slid across the truck to the other side from the dangerously sharp swerve. Misty glanced at the now broken door and gasped in horror. The driver was unconscious thanks to the Magma commander being tossed at him.

"Oh no! The driver's out cold! We're going to crash!"

"What?" Ash stood up, but the pain in his chest made him stumble. Misty stopped him from falling over.

"Ash, please hang on!" She pleaded.

"We've got to get out of here!" Using all of his remaining strength, Ash saw his opportunity and leapt out the back of the truck. He did it just in time too, because the truck collided with another car and rolled over several times before exploding. Unfortunately, the truck was near the edge of the highway bridge, which was at least a 100 feet drop.

"Ash, if we don't do something, we're going to die!" Misty held tightly onto Ash, praying they would somehow get out of the situation alive. Pikachu did that same.

Ash clenched his eyes shut. He felt the life in his body slip away, draining his strength. Suddenly, it was almost as though his life flashed before his eyes. All of the journeys, friends, battles, Pokémon, it was almost as though he was reliving his past. Though, there was one thing he saw continuously, something he could and would never forget, Misty. Why did she appear the most in his memories? Why was she so important to him? If only he could live long enough to realize this…

Suddenly, Ash's pocket began to shine brilliantly! Ash opened his eyes and stared at his pocket in shock. He had put the GS ball in the same pocket he put the mysterious shard in, but somehow, the ball suddenly opened! A small, black ball emerged from Ash's pocket and flew inside his chest, causing everything to go black.

Mysterious void

Ash opened his eyes and found himself in a mysterious place, empty, silent, and down right creepy. All he could see was darkness. As he walked within the void, curiosity struck him as to where he was. "Hello? Anyone home?" No response. He continued to walk for several moments, searching for anyone, anything.

"You of determination and will, do you want the power?" A voice asked.

"WA!" Ash whirled around, but saw no one. When he turned around, a man stood directly in front of him with his arms crossed. The tips of his black hair were red as blood. He wore lightweight black and red knight's armor, complete with a long cloak that wrapped around his shoulders and steel arm guards. What really freaked Ash out was the fact this man looked exactly like him, except he seemed at most 2 years older, his skin was tanned and his voice was slightly deeper. The Ash look-alike had a cool, dark atmosphere about him, almost able to freeze a normal man on the spot with his glare. "Where are we?"

"We are inside your unconscious mind. This is the realm of your inner most thoughts."

"My unconscious mind?" No wonder the area was so dark. This was the part of Ash's mind most unknown, even to him.

"Do you want the power young one?" The man asked again.

"Power? What power?"

"The end of your life draws near. The only way to save yourself is to accept my help. The power I offer is one that will save you and those of your allies."

"The power that can save my friends…?" Ash thought about it. If he didn't accept the offer, two of his best friends, including himself, would die. What other choice did he have? "…Fine, I accept."

"Be warned, this power comes with a price. Do you still accept knowing this?"

Ash didn't take more than a second to decide. "Yes."

"So be it." The man extended his hand to Ash. "Grasp my hand and closed your eyes. I will do the rest." Ash did what he was told and grasped the man's hand. Instantly, Ash felt a strange sensation surge through his body. A strange dark shroud veiled the two, and that was the last thing Ash remembered.

Viridian highway – 50 feet till impact

"Ash, are you there? ASH!" Misty had been calling Ash for the past few moments, but received no response. Ash's eyes empty, void of anything. Was he…? "Please don't be dead Ash! I haven't even told you that I…huh?" Misty's eyes widened when she saw something strange happening to Ash. His skin was tanned and the tips of his black hair turned red. Ash's eyes snapped open suddenly and a black portal opened in front of the three, drawing them in. Ash, Misty and Pikachu disappeared without a trace…

Unknown forest

"Ugh…huh…?" Ash felt himself being shaken awake. His eyes fluttered open and found Misty trying to wake him up. "Misty? What happened?"

"Ash…?" Misty's eyes started to water, overwhelmed with joy." YOU'RE ALIVE!" She latched herself onto him, sobbing uncontrollably. Ash was extremely surprised and confused.

"What happened to us?" He asked, still bewildered.

"You…you were… and we almost…" Misty choked between sobs. She calmed down a bit when Ash embraced her and stroked her back softly.

"It's alright Misty, I'm okay now. You don't need to cry anymore." Ash soothed. He sighed when he felt her relax.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu climbed onto Ash's shoulder, hugging him affectionately.

"Hey Pikachu! I'm glad you're alright too." Ash said. Pikachu glanced between Ash and Misty, and then winked at Ash.

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu gave Ash the thumbs up.

"Good job?" What do you mean by…oh…" Ash's face turned crimson when he realized what Pikachu meant. He was still holding onto Misty, and by the look of Misty's red cheeks, she had just realized the same thing. The two shot away from each other, blushing. They glanced downward at the patch of grass in front of them, feeling awkward and embarrassed.

"_Bleh…give me a break!_" A voice familiar to Ash gagged.

"What on earth…?" Ash stood up and glanced around. Misty stood up with him, confused by his action.

"Ash? Is something the matter?" Misty asked.

"Uh…sort of. I could've sworn I heard someone. Meh, probably nothing important…" Ash shrugged.

"_How dare you call me nothing important! I saved your pathetic life and this is the thanks I get?_"

"There it was again!" Ash exclaimed.

"Are you hearing voices in your head…again?" Misty inquired.

"No! Well…not recently…" Ash answered. Misty shot him a look of surprise. She was just joking with that question…

"_Fool! Be quiet and listen! Only you and people with moderate spiritual power can hear or see me. We can also communicate by thought. Yes, I can hear the insulting thoughts going through your feeble mind. I am NOT a crazed psychic that's messing with your head!_" The voice shot angrily.

"What is going on?" Ash gripped his head and clenched his eyes shut. Misty peered over him worriedly.

"Ash? What's wrong?"

"Uh…Misty…?" Ash started slowly, "I think…I'm going crazy."

"That's kinda obvious, but what's driving you crazy?"

"I am hearing a voice in my head. Either that or a very crappy voice over…"

"DAMMIT, _I AM NOT A CRAPPY VOICE OVER!_" The voice roared, causing Ash to jump in surprise. Seeing Misty was slightly spooked, Ash decided to calm down and speak to this other person mentally.

"_Who are you and how are you inside my mind?_"

"_I suppose since we're going to be like this for awhile I might as well tell you. I am a 5000 year old spirit who was stuck inside that blasted sealing device. I am Satoshi, the guardian of darkness. Lo and behold!_" Satoshi appeared next to Ash in ghost form. Ash jumped back in surprise.

"Whoa!" Ash wasn't expecting something like that to happen, which took him by surprise.

"A-A-Ash? You're really starting to creep me out!" Misty said, inching away slowly. Pikachu had an equally scared expression.

"Oh, um….sorry. I guess the shock for what happened earlier made me a bit crazy." Ash lied. Surely, he couldn't tell Misty that the evil spirit from the GS ball possessed Ash.

Wait…evil spirit…guardian of darkness…uh oh…

Ash was about to question the spirit when he noticed his surroundings. The forest, the trees, everything looked so familiar, and he knew why. "Hey… this is the forest near Pallet town! We've made it to Pallet town!" He cheered merrily. Misty glanced around and noticed this as well.

"Yeah, it is…but how did we get here? Last thing I remembered, we were falling." Now that she thought about it, how did they arrive here? She remembered Ash somehow transforming and then a black hole appeared and swallowed them up. Maybe a psychic Pokémon was nearby and saved them by using teleport. But…that wouldn't explain why Ash changed the way he did.

Satoshi stood up with Ash. "_Ash was it? I have many questions for you, but from what I read in your mind, this Professor Oak can probably help me understand this world better. Let us make haste._"

Ash concealed it from Misty, but he started to panic. "_Wait…you can read my mind? But then…_"

"_Do not worry. We share the same vessel, so I wouldn't dare pry into matters that are too private. I may be from the darkness realm, but even I have respect for someone's privacy…somewhat._" Satoshi reassured, '_And besides, since you can't read my mind, I have sheer advantage over you in case you attempt to kick me out of your body or go against me. Fufufufu…._'

"_Well, if you're sure…_" Ash decided not to pry into the matter…for now. He faced Misty. "Alright, let's head to meet Professor Oak!"

"Sure thing!" With that, Misty, Ash, Pikachu, and their new mysterious companion Satoshi headed their way towards Pallet town.

* * *

Whew, that's chapter 4 for ya! Don't worry, there's more to come, and possibly some more excitement and humor also. Stay tuned for the next chapter and review like you've all been doing so far! Laterz! 


	5. The legend

**_Chapter 5 – The legend_**

Pallet town

Ash and Misty had finally reached Pallet town, a small and welcoming rural village with a clean and warm atmosphere. In the distance was a large observatory on top of a hill. That was Ash's destination. When they reached the observatory's door, Ash pressed the door bell. On the screen next to the door appeared a 60 year old man wearing a lab coat.

"Who is it?" The man asked.

"Professor Oak, it's me, Ash!" Ash announced. Oak looked taken aback.

"Wow! Long time no see Ash! Please, come in!" Oak pressed a button to unlock the door, allowing Ash and Misty to enter. Just as Ash remembered it, the lab was filled with different inventions and materials for Pokémon. After passing several doors, Ash found the professor in his lab.

"Hey professor, it's been awhile." Ash greeted.

"_Great gods! That man is ancient! Was he alive during my era?_" Satoshi gasped.

"_Be quiet!_" Ash hushed.

"_Don't tell ME what to do! I'll be quiet when I want to!_"

"_Why you…_"

"So Ash, did you bring that shard?" Professor Oak asked. Ash nodded and pulled out the rainbow colored fragment from his pocket, showing the professor. Satoshi gawked in shock.

"_Impossible! Ash, how did you get your hands on that?_"

"_You know about this thing?_" Ash inquired.

"_Yes! I know much about it!_" Satoshi was about to continue when the doorbell rang.

"Ah, looks like we have another guest. Ash, Misty, you two just sit tight and relax while I get that." Oak left to get the door. A few minutes later, Oak brought the guest with him to meet Ash and Misty.

"Brock? When did you get here?" Misty asked, very surprised.

"After the situation in Viridian, Gary gave me a ride back here. I'll tell ya, those guys are _fast_! I got here in no time at all!"

"Ah, my grandson brought you here? Tell me, how is he?" Oak asked. The gang scratched their heads nervously, unsure of how to break the news.

"Well…he's doing great! You know, got some new friends and having a great time." Brock said finally. It wasn't exactly a lie, but it probably wouldn't be the best idea to tell him what his grandson is really doing.

"That's good to hear." Oak smiled.

"Hey, um…professor? Can I talk to you about something?" Ash asked. Oak nodded, urging him to continue. "Well, something weird happened ever since earlier. At one point, the GS ball opened and something went inside of me. Ever since, there has been this weird, bossy voice annoying me. And I'm starting to think its some annoying ghost haunting me."

Satoshi clenched his fist in fury. "_You insolent brat! If you weren't my spirit carrier, I would destroy you!_"

"Grrr, there it was again!" Ash grimaced.

"Come to think of it, you were acting strange earlier…" Misty put two and two together and was shocked. "Wait a minute, what if….what if you are possessed by the evil spirit within the GS ball?"

"If this is true, than we've got to get rid of it somehow." Brock guessed. Oak pondered about Ash's story and had an idea.

"Ash, can you summon Noctowl for me?" Oak requested.

"Sure thing." Ash unclipped on of his Pokéballs and summoned a night owl Pokémon.

"Okay, now have it use Foresight."

"Ah, that's right! Foresight gives ghost a physical appearance!" Brock exclaimed.

"Great idea professor! Noctowl, use Foresight!" Ash commanded. Noctowl's eyes glowed red and released a wave of red light throughout the room. When the light passed Ash, everyone was startled with what appeared. Satoshi glanced at his hands, very surprised.

"This…is incredible! I can touch things now! Which reminds me…"

_POW!_

"OW!" Ash fell down after getting punched in the head, but Satoshi continued to stomp on him while he was on the ground.

"Don't you dare call me an annoying ghost you little ingrate!" After a final stomp, Satoshi turned away and crossed his arms. "And to think I help save you and that woman's life!"

"Wait…you saved us?" Misty recalled Ash's hair and skin changing color. It was almost for an instant, but there was no denying it. Ash looked exactly like the spirit! "Who are you and what do you plan to do with Ash?" She demanded. Whether that man saved them or not, she couldn't trust him, especially after hearing the story about the spirits being evil.

Satoshi glanced at Misty smoothly. "I don't know who you think you are, but I don't take orders from anyone. Who I am and what I plan to do with Ash is my own business, not yours."

Misty was convinced. Not only was this spirit a jerk, but evil! She had to think of a way to get rid of it, but the only way she could think of to get rid of the spirit was… "Don't worry Ash; I'll get rid of him!" She dashed towards Ash and reached into his pocket for the GS ball. Unfortunately, when her hand touched the GS ball, the ball reacted and opened. Everyone jumped back in surprise as a bright, yellow sphere floated from the ball and shot inside Misty!

Misty's unconscious mind

Misty opened her eyes and found herself in a bright, yellow room that seemed to stretch endlessly. She could sense a presence in the area. It was warm and inviting. As she walked aimlessly into the unknown, she couldn't help but be a little afraid. How did she get here? Where was she? What was going to happen? All of these questions and more ran through her mind as she felt herself starting to worry.

"Is anyone here? Can you help me?" Misty pleaded, searching for any signs of life.

"One of loyalty and love, do you wish for divine strength?" A soft, feminine voice asked.

Misty whirled around and nearly fell back in surprise. In front of her stood a tanned woman who looked exactly like her, though about a year older. The woman wore a white chest plate with a chain mail under it, white shoulder pads with yellow outlines, and a platinum silver cape with a foreign insignia and crimson interior. On her hands were silver gauntlets with a small, tear shaped guard overlapping her knuckles and wrist. Thick, white greaves were equipped on her legs. Misty was awestruck at the sheer beauty and divinity the woman displayed.

"What strength are you talking about?" Misty asked.

"The power to protect the one you love from the darkness that is haunting him. Please, allow me to help you save him." The woman extended her hand to Misty, who was a little wary about her. The woman sensed Misty's hesitation and smiled warmly. "Don't worry. I do not wish to cause you harm, but only help you."

Misty thought about her words. If she was willing to help Ash, she couldn't be all that bad, but…with the story she heard about the spirits, she could be trying to trick her. But…it was something about this spirit…something trustworthy and kind. Misty trusted her instincts and decided to accept the woman's help.

"Sure. I thank you for your help." Misty grasped the girls hand and immediately felt a strong surge of strength flow through her. She and the other woman were soon enveloped in a ball of light.

Professor Oak's lab

Everyone gasped as the ball of light flowed into Misty. She was still for a few moments until her skin turned tanned and her hair silver. Just as quickly, Misty changed back and fell on her knees, winded. Ash immediately kneeled next to her.

"Misty, are you alright? What happened?" Ash asked, shaking her shoulders lightly.

Misty shook her head, trying to shake off the headache. "Ugh…I don't know. As soon as I touched the GS ball, I appeared in his empty room, and I met this woman who looked exactly like me, except she had silver hair and dark skin." Misty glanced to her side and gasped over in shock. The same woman she met was standing right next to her! "It's you!"

The woman smiled down on Misty as she helped her up. "Yes, I thank you for releasing me from that prison. I would've been stuck there for many more years had you not freed me."

"Yeah, and I wish she stayed there." Satoshi huffed.

The armored woman shot a menacing glare at Satoshi. "I knew I sensed a dark presence! Satoshi, guardian of darkness!" She took on a battle stance, ready to fight.

"Ah, Kasumi, guardian of light. So you remembered me after all these millennia. I'm flattered." Satoshi tossed her cocky grin, only serving to infuriate her.

_SMASH!_

Everyone jumped as Kasumi flew at Satoshi and swung her fist. The punch Satoshi barely dodged split one of the tables in half. Satoshi didn't even try to put up a fight, but merely dodged Kasumi's strikes and taunted her. Luckily, Ash and Misty held back their respective spirits and stopped them from destroying the lab any further.

"Oh, excuse me. I apologize for destroying your home sir." Kasumi bowed apologetically.

Ash glared at Satoshi, who just shrugged and crossed his arms. "What? I got nothing to apologize for. That savage monstrosity you call a female attacked me first!" Satoshi argued.

_SMACK!_

"ARG!" Satoshi growled as Ash slapped him upside the head. The darkness guardian seethed as he bowed to Professor Oak in a similar fashion to Kasumi. "I didn't mean to wreck your home Professor Oak." Ash smiled victoriously at Satoshi's apology. It didn't sound like a real one, but it was still something. "_You better sleep with one eye open, Ketchum!_" Satoshi warned telepathically. Ash gulped in fear, hoping he was just trying to scare him.

"It's okay. The Pokémon I take care of here have done a lot worse." The professor waved off. "Now Ash, can I see that mysterious shard?"

"Huh? Oh right, here." Ash pulled the fragment from his pocket and gave it to Oak.

Kasumi gasped in surprise. "Impossible! That's…"

"Correct. That's a fragment of the legendary Final Destiny." Satoshi finished for her.

"Final Destiny?" Ash, Misty, Brock, and Oak asked at the same time.

"Can you tell us more about it, Satoshi?" Oak requested.

Satoshi nodded. "The Final Destiny has existed even before our time. Its infinite power was said to be able to grant the user more than enough strength to rule the universe as that person saw fit. It is strange how such a powerful orb was shattered. I was quite surprised to see Ash with a shard of the Final Destiny, seeing that if the object was completed his power and abilities would be limitless."

"That sounds unbelievable!" Ash said, amazed.

"I don't blame you for being skeptical. Everyone from our continent thought the same thing at one point, but as soon as the real thing was seen, all hell broke loose."

"That reminds me," Oak eyed the spirit's clothing and insignia. "The clothes, tanned skin, the markings, none of you are from Kanto or any region I know of. Tell me, what continent are you from?"

"We come from a land very far away from here, a place called Lumina." Kasumi answered.

"Lumina? I've never heard of such a place. Can you tell me more about it? Including your history and culture?" Oak pressed on, intrigued.

Satoshi shrugged. "I don't see why not. Sure, I'll tell you what I remember. It all started over 5500 years ago, before me and the light scum other there existed." He jerked his thumb at Kasumi, who growled in response. "Lumina used to be a peaceful continent, where people were joined together and knew nothing of war. All was calm until one day, a rumor passed through one ear to another, whispering about news of a powerful object with boundless power, namely Final Destiny. At first, it was considered absurd and unbelievable. However, as time passed, more and more people began believing that it existed, and soon, the once peaceful people of Lumina started bickering and fighting with each other. Soon enough, wars were declared and lives were lost. As the years passed by, some of the factions were united as others were split apart. This resulted in creating five empires that ravaged the lands, turning it into an inhabitable wasteland, full of sand, death and despair." Satoshi paused, cueing Kasumi to continue.

"As he said, by the climax of the war, Lumina was split up into five parts, each belonging to a specific civilization: Mizura of water, Fazura of fire, Terroga of nature, Raikeiza of light, and Kuroza of darkness. As you can guess, I'm a Raikeizian and Satoshi's a Kurozian, practically polar opposites. The Luminarian war dragged on for hundreds of years. Many lives were lost and even more lived in despair. During the war, the five guardians of each civilization were born, the representative champions of each empire, namely us. We were all mortal enemies and fought each other innumerable amount of times. But one day, that all changed…"

"It was the same day of our final battle." Satoshi said.

"What happened?" Ash asked.

Satoshi sat in a chair, grimacing about the final battle. "Each of our countries discovered the whereabouts of the Final Destiny and sent the main bulk of their legions towards the location. All five guardians lead the troops for the battle for infinite power. As our armies fought each other, we guardians commenced our battle inside the temple where the Final Destiny resided. It was fierce and lasted for many hours. In the middle of our battle, _he_ arrived. I do not know his name, but he was a man who was very powerful, more powerful than all of us combined. All five of us fought him, but the best we could do was mortally wound him. It was then he pulled out THAT thing!" He pointed at the GS ball. "He stole our souls and locked them inside. I don't remember anything after that."

Ash, Misty, Brock, and even Professor Oak was astonished with the tale. Normally, they would find it hard to believe, but the fact they were spirits held some truth. Professor Oak held his chin as he pondered. "So, you say this is a shard of the ancient and powerful artifact?"

"Yes, though I am curious about why it is in pieces. I wonder what could've happened after our souls were locked…" Satoshi pondered.

"I see." Oak turned to Ash. "Ash, would it be alright if you and your friends would wait outside the lab for awhile? And allow me to borrow your Pokédex in the mean time."

"Sure." Ash handed the professor his Pokédex. When he recalled Noctowl in the Pokéball, Satoshi and Kasumi faded from sight. However, Misty and Ash could still see the spirits. Ash, Misty and Brock waited outside Oak's laboratory.

In the hallway, the three trainers sat together on the bench in the lobby area, still trying to let the rush of information sink in. While the gang has seen amazing things happen before, this was something they never experienced, and it was very strange and hard to believe. As Ash thought about story, he noticed thick tension between Kasumi and Satoshi. They were sitting on the floor next to their respective partners with their arms crossed and facing away from each other. Sure, Ash could understand they disliked each other since they were enemies from the start, but it felt like there was something more between them. Another strange thought occurred to Ash when he glanced at Brock, who was leaning against the wall, relaxing.

"Hey Brock, can I ask you something?" Ash asked.

"Sure thing" Brock said.

"Every time we came across a girl, you were always the first one to be in her face, but when we met Kasumi, you didn't do anything. Why's that?"

Brock crossed his arms and furrowed his eyebrows. "Well, can't say for sure. I didn't get that feeling I normally get when we meet a pretty girl. It could be because Kasumi looks like Misty, but also, I think it's something else."

"Something else?" Misty inquired, interested.

Brock nodded. "Yeah. I don't know what it is though. Just something about the girl I can't put my finger on…"

"Hmm…you know what? I think I know what it is!" Ash exclaimed.

"Really? What?"

"Well, you know how you go after every _pretty_ girl? I guess it's because Kasumi didn't meet your standard of pretty girls."

_SMACK!_

"Ouch!" Ash rubbed his head after getting punched.

"Don't talk about Kasumi that way! Especially since she looks like me!" Misty chastised. It was just then it hit her. "Wait a minute…why is that?"

Kasumi thought about it as well. _"If you think about it, we can only join host bodies that have the potential to suit our past selves, not to mention being related in some way."_

Ash's eyes widened. "Wait a minute! Are you saying…?"

"_Correct, the host and their spirits are distant relatives."_ Satoshi answered. _"I guess that means the red head is bossy and short-tempered."_

"Don't forget scrawny looking." Ash added.

"_Oh, right. Almost forgot that one!"_

_POW!_

Both Satoshi and Ash winced in pain as Kasumi and Misty punched them. Both girls sat back at their respective spots and huffed. Brock just sighed, watching the strange scene unfold before him. Not being able to see the spirits made things very confusing and awkward.

"Man, I really wish I could see those spirits. It's kinda confusing watching you guys like this."

"Count yourself lucky. You won't be irritated nearly as much." Ash sighed.

"_Watch yourself boy!"_ Satoshi warned.

"_Misty…I have something important to discuss with you."_ Kasumi spoke mentally. _"Just speak with your mind so no one else can hear."_

Misty nodded and did what Kasumi requested. _"Um…okay. What is it?"_

"_That spirit harboring Ash's body is pure evil, a monster of destruction that must be stopped. If we don't destroy him soon, Ash's soul will be devoured by him."_

"_Are you serious?" _Misty almost gasped, but stopped herself. She didn't want to alarm Ash and the others.

"_Think about it. Satoshi is the guardian of **darkness**. Does that in any way sound like a good guy to you?"_

"_I guess your right about that."_

"_I know I'm right. Satoshi's from the same race of people who kill their own kind for power, whose lust for greater power knows no bounds. Everyone knows nothing good comes out of darkness. Darkness is the veil that hides true evil. If we work together, we could crush him and save Ash, but we have to act carefully. Satoshi is a cunning and dangerous foe. We can't act hastily."_

"_Um…okay, but what can I do to help?"_

"_You'll be the key part of the plan. When the time comes, you'll be able to help. For now, you must use your own strength to fight your battles. From what I can tell so far, you are a skilled Pokémon trainer. While it is good to use Pokémon for especially tough battles, you should fight as well to gain more strength. Trust me; fusing with spirits brings many merits. For one, while you are not any stronger than before you fused with me, the growth of your strength increased extravagantly, so you'll quickly get stronger. Just remember, you should fight battles as well as your Pokémon. Grow strong and train well."_

"_Alright, I will. Thanks for the future warning."_ Misty glanced at Ash sadly. Ash was possessed by the evil spirit, yet he didn't seem worried about it. It was almost as if Ash trusted the spirit. If that was the case, Ash would be in trouble. "Don't worry Ash, I'll save you soon. Just hang on." Misty whispered quietly.

A few minutes later, Professor Oak emerged from his lab and returned the Pokédex and Final Destiny shard to Ash. "I would like to make an important request."

"Yes professor?" Ash listened closely.

"According to Satoshi and Kasumi's story, if this Final Destiny was to be constructed into a whole again, the world could be in danger. Normally, I wouldn't take a second thought about this legendary artifact, but it would seem that Team Rocket, Magma and Aqua are after these things as well. This leads me to believe that collect these shards would keep them from falling into the wrong hands. Ash, I think it would be best if you traveled the world and collected all of the shards."

"Travel the world?" Everyone exclaimed.

"Yes. Ash, I gave your Pokédex a new function. Now it can detect any Final Destiny shards that are nearby. The Pokédex will do it automatically, so you don't have to worry about missing any shards. Be sure to check all of the key spots on the continents you pass by. I know this is a daunting task, but it would probably be a good idea for you to go through with this. Now, if you were to decline, I can understand…"

"No way!" Ash exclaimed, shocking everyone. "As a matter of fact, I can't wait to travel the world again! Plus, there are so many new things going on that I can't help but wonder how much world has really changed. Besides, if I declined, I would never hear the end of it."

"_You damn skippy you would never hear the end of it!"_ Satoshi grinned excitedly. He was starting to like Ash. The boy held promise.

"I'm for it if Ash goes." Misty joined.

"Count me in! Can't let you two have all the fun." Brock agreed.

"Alright, it's been decided. Starting tomorrow, you three will travel the world in search of the Final Destiny fragments." Professor Oak said.

"Sounds great! Thanks for your help professor." Ash thanked. He turned around and left with Brock and Misty for his house. As Ash stepped inside the house, he found it strangely empty. Normally, his mother and her Mr. Mime, Mimie, would be home. The gang spent the night and prepared to depart for a new adventure starting tomorrow.

Viridian city – Team Nova headquarters

Wes parked his damage bike in basement of the building. He was extremely exhausted and injured from his bout against May, and nearly lost his life. Luckily, he managed to chase her off and arrive where the Magma transporter crashed. He searched for Ash and Misty practically everywhere, but they were gone. No traces of them were anywhere, and the GS ball was gone too. Considering that as a mission failure, he made his way to Boss man's office, fearing the extreme verbal abuse he was about to receive.

"Oh man, Boss man's gonna have my hide for this." Wes sighed, making a turn in the hallway.

"HIYA WES!" A girl's voice shouted from behind. The girl latched herself onto Wes's back, causing him to lose balance.

"Whoa, whoa, WAH!"

_CRASH!_

"Ouch…" Wes groaned in pain, face first on the ground. He slowly pushed himself up, with the girl still hanging onto his back. He glared irritably at the 14 year old girl hanging onto him. The girl wore a light blue jacket over her purple halter top, a white mini skirt and pink go-go boots. Her orange hair had two pig tails and she had big, adorable blue eyes.

"What happened to you? Did you get hurt during the big chase?" The girl asked.

"Gee, I don't know Rui, Maybe it was the fact that you JUMPED ON ME!" Wes stood up and dusted himself off, but the girl continued to hold onto him by wrapping her arms around his neck.

"You know I was just having fun. Hey, we're spying on Ash and his friends. Wanna listen in?"

"What? Ash and Misty are alright?" Wes asked in surprise.

"Yep! Not only that, but something special is going on! Let's go listen!" Rui released Wes's neck and dragged him by the hand, beaming with excitement.

"Whoa, hey, slow down! I'm coming too!" Wes pleaded. They soon arrived in the meeting room. The first person to greet them was an auburn haired, 15 year old boy with a blue baseball cap, a teal shirt complete with same colored vest and pants, blue fingerless biker gloves and sneakers. A Pikachu was next to his leg. "Hey Ritchie, I heard that something weird was going on." Wes said.

"Yeah, and you wouldn't believe what we've heard! See for yourself!" Ritchie led Wes and Rui to where the rest of the group was. In the middle of the meeting room, Brendan, Gary and Boss man sat around a table, listening to a recorded message on a computer. Wes sat next to Brendan and patted on his shoulder.

"Hey brother, what's up?" Wes smiled cheekily. Brendan groaned tiredly as he removed Wes's hand.

"How many times do I have to tell you? We are NOT brothers!"

"Nonsense! We look so much alike. We're practically twins!"

Brendan tossed Wes a flat gaze. "The only thing similar about us is our hair. However, my hair is pure white while yours is silver."

Wes shrugged. "Meh, close enough. So brother, what's going on here?"

Brendan sighed at the "brother" comment. There was just no getting through to him! "Gary tagged Brock before letting him go, so now we can keep track of Ash's whereabouts and conversations."

"Ash is always landing into trouble one way or another, but something told me to tag one of his buddies, and I called right." Gary said.

"Trouble is right. I barely got out of that highway alive. Luckily, that Team Shadow chick ran away from me before we could finish our duel. Gotta admit, that girl was hot." Wes held his chin and grinned.

Brendan groaned irritably. "Are girls all you think about?"

Wes shook his head. "Of course not…I think about girls, chicks, babes, and hotties!"

"No fair! What about me?" Rui pouted.

Wes patted her head gently and smiled. "Don't worry. You'll always be my number one."

"Yay!" Rui gave Wes a bone crushing hug on his windpipe.

"Ack! Can't…breathe…" Wes gasped, reaching out for air.

"If you goofballs are done fooling around, let's get down to business." Everyone stopped what they were doing and sat in their seats as Boss man turned on the speakers for the computer. The entire conversation Ash had with Professor Oak was being played. After listening, most of the teens were shocked and skeptical with what they heard.

Brendan on the other hand, wasn't convinced. "That can't be real. Such a thing cannot exist." He commented, shifting his glasses. "Not only that, but 5000 year old ghosts? I can understand ghost Pokémon, but get real…"

"I wouldn't put it past Ash." Gary disagreed, "You heard the voices. I doubt they were fooling with us. But if something like that did exist, it would explain why Team Rocket is so bent over getting their hands on it."

"Very true. What's your take on it Boss man?" Wes asked.

Everyone turned to Boss man, who was thinking it over. "Hmmm…just in case, we should take it from him. We can't risk something of that much importance in their hands. According to their conversation, we should wait for them to pass by here, since they are going to travel around Kanto. Gary, you'll take command of this mission. You and Ritchie know Ash better than any of us, so you two will try to talk him into giving it to us."

"While I agree with you, what if Ash doesn't want to give it to us? He's very stubborn like that." Ritchie inquired.

"Then, we will have to take it by force. I'll leave it up to you guys. Now go and prepare to catch them."

Everyone stood up and salute Boss man. "Yes sir!"

Team Shadow's Arch Angel

"Very interesting…" Melody grinned. Team Nova weren't the only ones with secret listening devices. Before Melody and Duplica escaped, Duplica managed to tag Brendan with her multi-purpose battle rifle. The conversation Team Nova heard was also heard by Team Shadow!

"What do you think May?" Duplica asked.

May thought about the conversation and nodded. "It makes sense when you think about it. I mean, why would Team Rocket, and other such groups be so active nowadays? You've heard the reports. They are all scattered across the globe, searching frantically for something. It must've been the Final Destiny."

"But something bothers me. Why now? Why couldn't those bad guys search for the things earlier? Doesn't that strike you as odd?" Melody pointed out. The other girls thought about Melody's words. It was true. Had Team Rocket, Magma, or Aqua searched for the shards earlier, they probably would have found most of them by now. There was only one explanation. The three teams must have found out about it recently! Whoever told the teams about the sacred item most likely knew more about it then that he or she was letting on. But why would someone who was the only person to know about the fragments suddenly tell a group of dangerous teams about it? Did that mean someone was behind the scenes and pulling the strings? Or…was it something much worse?

"Don't know about that, but if anything, there is definitely someone else we need to worry about, and it's not those three teams we face practically every day…"

"That's a good point May." A female voice said from behind. Everyone turned to face their team commander, a mature, 29 year old woman with long, styled light blue hair and eyes. She was adorned in a stealth suit like May's, except the suit had more gadgets, was thicker because of the armor and secret compartments under it, and her signature black cape. May, Duplica, and Melody saluted her immediately.

"Good afternoon madam Clair!" The girls saluted in unison.

Clair laughed heartily. "Now, now, no need for formalities. Remember, I've personally trained each of you. And like I said before, you can just call me Clair when we are alone. Okay, let's get back on track. So we can hypothesize the possibility of a third party outside the groups we currently know of, correct?" The girls nodded. "If this is the case, then we got to dig up more clues and evidence regarding this. I feel with Ash now being involved in this, we should keep a sharp eye out for him. May, your team will keep a look out for Ash and his friends. Be sure to keep us informed about what he does and avoid direct contact with him. We'll brief you on anymore mission objectives as time progresses. Is that understood?"

May saluted Clair. "Yes. I'll watch over Ash and company, and also keep you informed on his activities."

"Good. Also, this Final Destiny seems very important, especially if everyone is trying to get their hands on it. If possible, try to obtain as many of the shards you come across as you can. We'll leave a few in Ash's hands until we come to a decision on the matter. For now, take a break and rest. We have quite the load ahead of us, especially since you failed to get the GS ball." Clair shrugged nonchalantly. "Oh well, better Ash has it then Team Magma. Until then, take it easy. You girls deserve it."

The girls took Clair's advice and left for their respective rooms. The race for Final Destiny has begun.

* * *

And that's chapter 5. Kinda slow, but there will be action (and humor) in the next chapter, so stay tuned and review! 


	6. Mysterious party

**_Chapter 6 – Mysterious party_**

Trail to Viridian city

Ash, Misty and Brock started traveling to Viridian city a few hours ago, and were getting close to the city limits. While walking, Misty noted Ash's worried expression.

"Is something wrong Ash?" She asked.

Ash sighed, his hands in his pocket. "Well, it's about everything that's been happening so far. I mean, think about it for a second: First off there's May. A few years ago, she was a sweet and innocent girl who wanted to become a Pokémon coordinator. Now, she works for Team Shadow, uses guns and gadgets that could only be seen in sci-fi movies! Next is Gary. After my _crushing_ victory over him some years ago, he decided to be a professor. But now he's in a super powerful police force! Not only that, but some of our old friends are now in super secret teams! I mean come on!" He threw his hands in the air in frustration, "What's next, James NOT wearing a dress? Or worse…Brock getting a date?"

"Ah…!" Misty gasped at the thought.

"Hey, it wouldn't be that surprising!" Brock frowned when he saw the looks he was getting. "…That's NOT funny!"

"_Wait, hold up!"_ Satoshi said suddenly, shocked and confused, _"Men in this era wear dresses? I'll bet this is all Kasumi's doing!"_ He pointed at the light guardian accusingly.

Kasumi scowled. _"And just HOW is it I can do such a thing when I was sealed along with you?"_

"_Simple. Your lame fashion sense must've affected the minds of today's generation and turned everyone into pansies!"_

"_Why you low down spirit! I should vanquish you right now!"_

"_Go ahead and try! Bring it on ya sissy!"_ Satoshi challenged.

"Enough fighting you two! That's all you ever do!" Misty chastised.

"_But you saw! He started it by insulting me!"_ Kasumi argued.

"_Obviously, she gets offended by hearing the truth. Such a shame…"_ Satoshi shrugged.

"_You're not helping the situation! Why can't you just get along with her?"_ Ash suggested mentally.

Satoshi gaped at Ash in horror. _"Have you lost your MIND? There's no way I would ever get along with that…thing!"_

"_Who are you calling a thing?"_ Kasumi yelled. Misty rubbed her temples, getting a headache.

"Ash? Please do something about Satoshi! I'm getting a headache from the constant bickering!"

"Gee, now you two know how I feel…" Brock mumbled quietly.

"_Satoshi, can you please cut it out? We're gonna be stuck together for a long time, so at least try to get along with her. Alright?"_ Ash pleaded. Satoshi sighed and scratched his head.

"_I think I'll just leave her alone for the time being. In the mean time, I'll just poke around your head to see if there's anything interesting…"_

"_Hey, don't go fishing through my head like a book!"_ Ash yelled mentally. But it was already too late.

"_Hmm…oh? I didn't know you did THAT! That is so embarrassing! What's this? You actually …? PFFFFT! HAHAHAAHA! That's priceless!"_

"_Stop it Satoshi! That is not cool!"_ Ash bellowed.

Suddenly, a small band of scruffy looking bandits appeared out of nowhere, armed with small daggers. One of the bandits approached Ash and company threateningly. "Alright, hand over yer money and Pokeballs, or else!"

Ash blinked, a little surprised. "What is this about?"

Satoshi thought about it for a moment. _"Hmm…random appearance…a large group of weaklings…Ah, I remember! Ash, this is a **Random Battle**!"_

"A random what?" Ash echoed.

"_Ooh, I love those! It's been so long!"_ Kasumi beamed.

"What's a Random Battle?" Misty questioned.

"_Only the coolest thing ever!"_ Satoshi boasted, _"Picture this. Imagine yourself walking along, minding your own business, and suddenly WHAM! A random group of enemies appear out of the blue and challenge you in a battle to the death!"_

There was a moment of silence. Ash and Misty stared oddly at Satoshi. "…You're nuts."

"_Actually, he's right! You see, after a battle, not only do you get stronger, but items and money too!"_ Kasumi mentioned.

Ash held his chin thoughtfully. "Items?"

Misty did the same. "Money?"

Brock and the bandits, who couldn't see or hear the spirits, stared at Ash and Misty strangely. What on earth were they talking about?

Ash turned to face the bandits. "Hey, could you give us a minute?"

The robber sweat-dropped. "Err…sure…"

"Group huddle!" Ash called. The gang huddled together and started chatting with each other. The bandits grew curious about their secret conversation until Ash and the rest stared at them with lean and hungry looks, making the bandits back up in fear.

"Uh…you know what? I think we'll will just leave and—"

"Not so fast!" Misty halted, brandishing her mallet. "LET'S LOOT THEIR CORPSES!" She roared in a battle cry.

"AAAAAH!" The bandits cried, getting beaten savagely by the three teens.

A few minutes later, the enemy bandits were now nothing more than a group of beaten bodies piled together. Ash, Brock and Misty continued their way to Viridian city, their wallets and backpacks a little heavier with their new items and cash.

Viridian City

Some time later, Ash, Misty and Brock finally made it to Viridian city. There were still some areas and buildings that were damaged from the fight involving Magma from yesterday, but other than that, the city was still a gorgeous metropolis.

"Oh yeah, you guys are from the past, so you wouldn't know about this stuff." Ash turned to the spirits, acting like a tour guide. "This is Viridian city, one of the biggest cities in Kanto. Pretty cool, huh?"

Satoshi and Kasumi gave each other a glance and then shook their heads disapprovingly. _"Nope. We've seen better."_

Ash was surprised. "How's that possible? You guys are from the past, right? So what would you know about technology and buildings like these?"

Satoshi pointed at Ash and shot him an irritated look. _"That is SO like you Ash, automatically assuming we're some kind of stupid barbarians just because we come from an earlier time and were armor! Though…if you looked at Kasumi long enough, you would get that kind of impression…"_

Kasumi curled her fist angrily. _"HEY!"_

"_Anyway, this city is okay. However, there were better looking cities in my time."_

"_Such as the Mizura capital city! It was so beautiful, especially at night!" _Kasumi had a dreamy look in her eyes, reminiscing.

"_Ugh, don't remind me…"_ Satoshi grimaced, remembering one of his failed assaults on the underwater kingdom. He was the only one to make it out alive!

_Beep………beep…_

"Huh?" Ash dug in his pocket and took out his Pokédex. It was detecting a shard of the Final Destiny! "Awesome! We already have a hint that a shard is nearby! Let's go investigate!" He yelled excitedly, running ahead.

"Ash, wait up!" Brock and Misty called, running after him.

Abandoned Parking Lot

Ash, Misty and Brock followed the detector and found the location of the fragment. It was inside an old, empty parking lot. It was eerily quiet, especially since the area he walked into was a construction zone. There was an unfinished building nearby with steel beams and other such things scattered about. Ash saw something sparkle in the distance and went to it. There, his eyes widened with surprise. It was the Final Destiny shard! He knelt over the shard and picked it up.

"Hold it Ash!" A voice called from behind. Ash and the gang whirled around and jumped in shock.

"Gary? What are you doing here?" Ash inquired.

"I know what you are planning to do Ash. What you are planning to do is especially dangerous."

"I know that! I've been through tons of dangerous situations before. This isn't any different!" Ash debated.

Gary shook his head. "Look, I don't know too much about the Final Destiny, but this is something that's way out of your league. I'll make this simple…" He extended his hand to Ash. "Hand over the shard and GS ball. Team Nova will be able to take care of things from here." Gary frowned with Ash hesitated. "Don't make things difficult Ash. Just leave things in our hands. You'll be able to go home and relax with your friends. Trust me…"

"Hmm…" Ash thought about it for a moment. He stared hard into the fragment glowing in his hands. Sure, if he left it with Team Nova, he could probably relax and not head into danger, but… "Sorry Gary, but I can't. The Final Destiny contains secrets that are too dangerous in anyone else's hands. I know you want to help Gary, and I do trust you, but this is something I know I have to do. I have this feeling about it. Sorry, but I can't let you have it."

"Hmph, I see. That's just like you Ash, stubborn as always." Gary unclipped a Pokéball on his belt and activated it. "Go, Umbreon!" He called out, summoning an all black, dog-like Pokémon with yellow ring patterns around its body.

"What are you doing?" Ash asked.

"I'm going to convince you one way or another. Call out your Pokémon!" Gary demanded.

"Gary…I can't fight you. You're my friend!"

"That's exactly why we have to battle! If you won't fight back, then I'll just take the initiative! Umbreon, use Tackle!"

"Umbreon!" The Pokémon cried, lunging after Ash.

Ash quickly reacted out of instinct. "Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Pika!" Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and rammed Umbreon, knocking it off balance. Umbreon recovered and was instantly on its feet.

"Umbreon, use Faint Attack!" Gary commanded. Umbreon faded and disappeared. Ash and Pikachu glanced around, looking for the moonlight Pokémon. Ash calmed his senses and concentrated on finding Umbreon. He could feel the vibrations in the air. The subtle movements of Umbreon moving in the shadows…

_POW!_

"AH!" Ash fell backwards, clutching his sore cheek. He stared in shock at Gary, who was standing above him. "Gary? Since when did you fight dirty?"

"Dirty fighting? This isn't one of your precious Pokémon battles. When it comes to fighting for your life, there are no rules. Now stand on your feet!" Gary commanded harshly.

"_Ash, he's right. He may be your friend outside of battle, but here, you must fight for what you believe in. People don't take kindly to words often. That's when you must use your hands."_ Satoshi advised wisely.

"Fine, it's that's the way you want it, Pikachu, NOW!" Ash cried.

Gary didn't even flinch as Pikachu prepared a Thunder Shock attack. "Umbreon, Tackle!"

_RAM!_

"PIKA!" Pikachu cried, getting tackled on the side by Umbreon.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried out. He was about to call out a command when he barely dodged Gary's punch.

"If you wanna help your Pikachu, you got to get through me first!" Gary started hoping left and right, his fist in a boxing stance. "Ready or not, here I come!" He ran up to Ash and swung at his face. Ash ducked under the jab and thrust his fist at Gary's stomach.

"Oof!" Gary stumbled back, clutching his stomach. Without pausing, Ash lunged at Gary and swung upward at his chin, but Gary caught his fist and flung him over his shoulder. When Ash landed, he rolled on his back and jumped to his feet. Gary jumped at Ash with threw a series of punches and kicks at him. Ash blocked and dodged most of the hits, but got struck by the last few and stumbled off balance.

"Gotcha!" Gary shouted, about to land a rolling kick. Ash immediately grabbed Gary's foot. "WHAT?"

"RRAAH!" Ash spun Gary and tossed him a good few feet away. Unfortunately, Gary recovered in the air and charged back at Ash.

_SMASH!_

"AH!" Ash received a powerful punch on his face and reeled back in pain.

_POW!_

"Guh!" Gary was punched in the stomach by Ash and nearly doubled over. The two teens and their Pokémon were equally match and could probably fight forever

Misty and Brock watched from the sidelines, hoping their fight would end soon with both boys still alive. Misty's hands were clenched at her sides, trembling from anger. The whole fight was not only pointless, but stupid! They were friends before, and now they were fighting each other over some dumb jewel? She was about to intervene was Brock blocked her.

"We've got to stop them Brock! There's no point in fighting each other!" Misty reasoned.

"Trust me Misty, if anything, I really want to stop them, but they have to settle things for themselves. If we intervene, then they will continue their bout at a later time. Let them get it out of their system. I'm sure once they're tired out from fighting they'll see the light."

Brock had a point and Misty knew it, but it was still unnerving. Can't those two stop and straighten things out without violence? Misty did the only thing she could, watch and hope they both stayed friends afterwards.

Ash and Gary's arms were locked. Neither one could move without being at a disadvantage. Ash grinned weakly, his lip bleeding. "Heh, it looks like we're tied. You always put up a good fight."

Gary smiled as well, his face sore from the punches. "Thanks, but you deserve credit as well….hm?" Something on the ground caught his attention. It was…a shadow? And it was getting bigger and bigger…! "Ash, look out!" Gary pushed Ash away and jumped back in the nick of time.

_CRACK!_

Everyone watched as the ground Ash and Gary were standing on was cracked, dust filtering the air. No one moved as they watched someone within the smoke waved it off with his green cape. A tanned man ranging around the age of 18 was in endowed in baggy, dark green clothing and cape, complimenting his long, smooth green hair. His sharp blue eyes locked on Ash as he stood up, dusting himself off. Everyone gawked in shock at the man, who noticed the looks he was getting. They were shocked not because he appeared out of nowhere, but he had fluffy dog ears and tail!

"Ash was it? So you are the one who—"

"KYAA! SO CUTE!" Misty squealed. She stood on her toes as she started playing with the man's ears. "Are these real? Oh my god, they are! This is the cutest thing I've ever seen!"

"Grrr…" The half human grew irritated with Misty, who wouldn't stop touching his ears. The fact he was especially ticklish there didn't help either. "WOULD YOU KNOCK IT OFF?" He screeched. Misty did so and stepped back, feeling disappointed. "Ahem, as I was saying, you are Ash, correct?" He asked, addressing Ash.

"Yeah, but who are you?" Ash asked back, cautious.

"I suppose it's fair to introduce myself. I am Leon."

"Hold up! You are THE Leon?" Brock gasped.

Leon raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Say…you don't happen to have a whip as a weapon, do ya?"

Leon dug into his coat and took out a black, leather whip. "Why yes I do."

"So…does that mean your last name is—"

"No, my last name is not Belmont! Kisaragi is my last name."

Brock wasn't convinced. "…Are you sure? I mean, don't you fight against vampires and stuff like that?"

"I am not Leon Belmont!" Leon yelled. Couldn't the guy take a hint?

"What do you want with us?" Ash demanded.

"What I want? Simple. The shards and GS ball. Hand it over if you wish to leave here alive."

Ash growled inwardly. How did this guy know about the shards? Was everyone after those things? "I don't think so."

Leon shrugged and pulled out a pair of black leather gloves, slipping them on. "I figured you would say that after watching you earlier. Oh well, shall we get started?" He took on a battle stance, preparing to attack. Suddenly, battle music started to play out of nowhere, startling Ash.

"Where is that music coming from?" Ash glanced around, trying to find the source.

"_Wait a minute, can it be? Dramatic entrance, a dangerous looking enemy, music out of nowhere, this must be a **Boss Battle**!"_ Satoshi exclaimed.

Ash groaned. "Not another one of those weird things you keep coming up with!"

"_Oh, but wait. This is special because we are fighting against a powerful foe! If we win, we'll gain greater strength than in Random Battles. Sometimes, we'll get really good items in the process too!"_

"_For once, that annoying guardian has a point. Misty, you and Brock should join the fight too. Remember, Pokémon should be use mainly in emergency situations. This is if you want to be stronger for future battles."_ Kasumi informed.

"This is starting to sound more and more like an RPG…" Ash mused.

Misty glanced questionably at Ash. "A what?"

"Never mind. Come on, let's go!" Ash, Gary, Brock and Misty charged at Leon from all sides.

"Four against one? This really does sound like an RPG. Heh, this should be amusing…"

"HM!" Gary attacked from Leon's left. Leon stepped back to dodge the blow and grabbed Gary's arm.

"Don't insult me!" Leon spat. He spun into a crouch and smashed Gary's stomach with his elbow, knocking the wind out of him. Ash did a low kick at Leon, only to have the half human roll dodge over his leg. Brock attempted to catch Leon off guard from behind, but he saw it coming. Leon whirled around and grabbed Brock by the shirt. He pulled back his fist to punch Brock when Ash grabbed his arm. Unexpectedly, Leon picked up Brock and smashed him into Ash! Both boys fell to the floor, badly injured.

"HA!" Gary did a jump kick on Leon. Leon swiftly grabbed Gary's foot and swung him around. After picking up enough speed, Leon tossed Gary high in the air and at the same time went for his whip. He used the whip to catch Gary's foot.

"You're mine!" Leon exclaimed.

_SMASH!_

"ARG!" Leon was sent skidding across the rough asphalt thanks to Misty's mallet slam. Gary was freefalling when Ash caught him before hitting the ground.

"Thanks Ash." Gary stood on his feet, catching his second wind.

Leon slowly recovered and rubbed his head. "Arg…such a headache. I can already tell you all will be a nuisance. Looks like I got to take you guys more seriously." He cracked his whip in the air, letting out an ear splitting snap.

"It looks like he isn't playing around any more. Let's take the safe way out of this battle. Let's go Umbreon!" Gary called. Umbreon stood in front of Gary, growling at his opponent.

Ash gave the thumbs up to Pikachu. "You too Pikachu!"

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do! Let's go Marshtomp!" Brock summoned the blue mudfish Pokémon. The water-type was more than half Brock's size and had two orange fins on its cheeks.

"Come on out Corsola!" Misty summoned a small, pink and white coral Pokémon.

"Hah! Now it's eight against one! Let's see you beat us now!" Ash boasted, laughing.

Leon was mildly surprised. "I'm impressed. You actually think you could win."

Ash stopped laughing and glared. "We'll show you! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" he shouted. Pikachu charged up and threw a huge payload of electric energy at Leon. Leon didn't move as the attack drew closer and closer. Just when it was about to land, Leon dashed out of the way and ran at Pikachu. His speed was equal to a Pokémon's Agility attack, leaving a trail of mirages behind him.

_SNAP! SNAP!_

Leon struck Pikachu with his whip twice, injuring him. He glanced behind to see Corsola and Marshtomp preparing to attack.

"Water Gun!" Misty and Brock yelled out. The water Pokémon unleashed a stream of high pressure liquid at Leon.

"What, so you're going to have Pokémon resort to spitting at me? How pathetic…" Leon dodged left and right as he ran at the two Pokémon. He rolled on the ground and kicked Marshtomp in the face. After skillfully dodging another stream of Water Gun attacks from Corsola, he whipped the Pokémon three times before kicking it like a football, sending it flying. Marshtomp recovered and tried to attack Leon, but he was ready. "On your knees!" Leon jumped and punched down on the Pokémon's head, knocking it unconscious.

Brock took out Marshtomp's Pokéball and recalled the fainted Pokémon. He opted to summon another Pokémon when Leon gripped his neck. "I don't think so. One Pokémon is enough for you!"

"NO, BROCK!" Ash cried. In a dash, he rammed into Leon's back, causing him to drop Brock.

"I've had enough of this." Leon recovered from Ash's attack whirled his whip in the air and spun it rapidly. "STINGER VORTEX!"

Something clicked in the back of Kasumi's mind. She didn't know what, but one thing was for certain: that move was lethal! _"Misty, tell everyone to get away, NOW!"_

"EVERYONE, GET BACK!" Misty yelled. Everyone took her advice and jumped away at the nick of time. Leon spun in a circle while making the whip rip through the ground. Everyone gasped when they saw a deep cut in the ground where the whip struck. Whoever was in Leon's range would've mostly been seriously injured or killed!

"Whew! Thanks for the save Misty!" Ash thanked.

"Whoa…" Gary was still amazed. Even if Leon was half human, there was no way a normal person could rip through the earth like that. His reflex, speed, strength, Leon was definitely extremely dangerous. The scariest part was Gary could tell he still wasn't fighting seriously! "Umbreon, use Bite!" Umbreon jumped at Leon from behind and bit him in the arm.

"ARG!" Leon tried to shake it off, but the Pokémon wouldn't budge!

"Pikachu, use Zap Cannon while he can't move!" Ash commanded. Pikachu took in massive amounts of electricity, preparing to use his ultimate electric attack!

"Yeah right! It's my arms that are immobilized, not my….WHAT?" Leon looked down and his eyes widened in fear. His feet were frozen to the ground! But when did that happen?

"You should've been paying more attention to all of our Pokémon!" Misty crossed her arms, smiling victoriously. "While you were busy fighting Brock, you've forgotten about Umbreon, who kept its presence hidden. Also, when Umbreon bit you, my Corsola froze your feet at the same time, so you didn't notice!"

"Grr…" Leon had no time to worry about them. Pikachu was about to unleash a devastating attack on him!

"Let's do it Pikachu! ZAP CANNON!" Ash called, pointing to Leon.

"Pi…ka…CHUUU!" Pikachu launched a huge ball of lightning at Leon, who was struggling to break free.

"Dammit!" Leon shielded himself the best he could before the attack hit. Umbreon jumped away just before the ball of lightning struck.

**CRRAASSSSSHH!**

"GWWAAAAAH!" The blast was so intense Leon was being lifted by the attack, heading towards a pile of steel beams and other equipment. A large explosion soon followed, causing most of the steel beams to collapse and fall on Leon.

"Yeah, we did it!" Ash cheered.

"YEAH!" Everyone joined. They were victorious!

"Don't…celebrate…just yet…" Leon panted, emerging pile of rubble.

"W-what? No way!" Ash stared in fear as Leon emerged from the destruction. The top half of his body was seared and bruised, but Leon was still able to fight!

"That's insane! How could you survive such an attack? You can't be human!" Misty gasped.

"HELLO! Doesn't the ears and give you a hint?" Leon yelled in annoyance. "Anyway, that attack was indeed impressive. I actually had use 60 percent of my strength to survive. However, the same thing won't happen twice! I'll crush you all!"

"I don't think so!" A hail of bullets rained in Leon's area, forcing him to be defensive. Everyone turned to see a red mech aiming a rifle at Leon. "Is everyone alright?"

"Rui! Man am I glad to see you!" Gary sighed in relief.

Leon growled in anger. Fighting a mech in his condition was the last thing he wanted to do. He had no choice but to retreat. "You'll all pay for this! I'll be back!" Leon ran off and jumped over a gate. He escaped.

The gang dropped to the ground, exhausted. Leon was able to take them on alone and even survive a full powered Zap Cannon! It was a wonder who Leon was, and how he knew about the Final Destiny fragments. Ash, Misty and Brock were about to relax when they heard Rui reloading her gun with a new clip.

"Don't even think about resisting! Gary, should we take them in?" Rui asked. Ash turned to Gary, a pleading look in his eyes.

Gary thought about something then turned to Ash. "Tell me Ash, why do you want to collect the Final Destiny shard so badly? I mean the real reason. Your reason."

Ash didn't need more than a second to think of an answer. "Ever since I found this shard, everyone's been fighting over it. I want to be able to prevent anymore meaningless violence. There are people that I care about who are probably involved in a struggle over the Final Destiny even now, and I want to save those people!"

"_Well said Ash. Tell it like it is!"_ Satoshi complimented.

Gary sighed and crossed his arms. "It's like I've been saying. That's just like you. Rui, let's not take these guys in."

"Okay." Rui slipped the giant rifle in the mech's gun holster on her back.

"Ash, why don't you guys stay over our place for the night? While there, we can catch up on old times." Gary invited.

"Sure thing. Thanks Gary!" Ash nodded. He turned to Brock and Misty. "Let's go guys."

"I'm all for a break." Brock agreed.

"Me too. I'm beat!" Misty sighed exhaustedly.

"Then follow me." Gary led the group to the Viridian headquarters to spend the night.

Hidden location

Leon sat in a secluded area, trying to catch his breath. He lost a lot of health back there. There was a slim chance he could've been killed. "Damn them! I should've just taken them out when I had the chance!"

"Relax big brother. It's not like it's a big deal anyway." A young boy's voice was heard in Leon's pocket.

Leon took out a high-tech communicator from his pocket and spoke into it. "Hey Zero. Just to give you a heads up, Satoshi and Kasumi are back."

"Say WHAT?" Zero gasped. "How was that possible? Weren't they sealed a long time ago?"

"Hmm…yeah, they were sealed, but they are spirits now. Not only that, but they've somehow manifested themselves inside some of those kids. Say, did you happen to see any of our old friends yet?"

"Nope. I'm sure we will come across a few. I hope we see some of them soon."

"Same here. Hey, I'm going on radio silence. I'll talk to you about it when I get back."

"Sure thing big brother. Take care!"

_Click!_

Leon got up and started walking, laughing weakly. "Ash…that was one great battle. You better survive until next we meet."

* * *

And that's chapter 6! I know, it's a bit slow, but bear with me! I've got plans, big plans! I didn't think this fic would be THAT popular, so I'm being sure to make it extra awesome! So many reviews and I'm only 6 chapters in! Please review and I'll see ya later!

Boss battle theme (subject to change and may repeat at certain points) – Fatalize – Tales of Symphonia OST

P.S. The joke with Brock and Leon is reference to Castlevania: Lament of innocence


	7. A night with the Novas

_**Chapter 7 – A night with the Novas**_

Team Nova Headquarters

After leaving their Pokémon at the Pokémon Center to heal, Gary led Ash, Brock and Misty inside the Team Nova base. The gang glanced around, surprised with the base's interior. The inside was very clean and professionally set up. A few officials could be seen passing by. All of them looked tough, as though they could take on 20 rockets single handedly. As they continued, they could see several training rooms, humans and Pokémon training each other fiercely. Ash was amazed with their level of combat. However, he had other things to think about, like what Team Nova was going to do with him.

Minutes later, they arrived in Boss man's office. Dozens of medals and awards hung vividly on the walls, glowing from the high gloss. There, they saw Boss man sitting at his desk, his fingers pressed together and his eyes in a fixated, unwavering gaze. Ash swallowed hard, feeling extremely tense. Misty and Brock sweated nervously along with Ash. Gary smirked on the side, knowing Boss man all too well.

"So Gary, are these the guys?" Boss man asked with low bass in his voice.

"These are the guys I've told you about. This is Ash, Misty, and Brock." Gary informed.

Boss man's eyebrow rose slightly. "Ash? As in _the_ Ash Ketchum?"

"Yeah."

"I see." The Team Nova leader stood up and walked over to Ash, making the young trainer even more nervous. "Do you know what I've got say to punks like you?"

Ash swallowed again, almost cracking from the pressure. "N-no. W-w-what do you say?"

"…Welcome to Team Nova headquarters! Bwuahahahaha!" Boss man grinned widely, patting roughly on Ash's shoulders. "I gotta admit, You got guts!"

"Hehehe, yeah. Thanks!" Ash laughed.

"_I must've been the only one to hear you shaking in your boots." _Satoshi commented.

"_Nope. I heard it too." _Kasumi agreed, chuckling to herself.

"_Hey, quit it!"_ Ash chastised telepathically.

"Ash, first off…hm?" When Boss man glanced at Misty, his eyes twinkled with interest.

Gary caught Boss man's look and groaned inwardly. 'Not again….' He thought irritably.

Without a second thought, Boss man swiftly approached Misty and held her hands within his, grinning sneakily. "Why hello cutie. You must be Misty, correct?"

"U-um…yes?" Misty squeaked, sweat-dropping. The man was creepy…

"A pleasure to meet you Misty. Everyone knows me as Boss man, but you may call me big daddy…hehehe…" Boss man was about to continue when Gary pulled Boss man away by the ear.

"I can't believe I am stuck doing this…" Gary sighed.

'Where have I seen that behavior before…?' Ash and Misty thought.

'I don't like that guy one bit. He's _way_ too familiar…' Brock seethed.

After getting his ear loose, Boss man fixed his coat collar. "Quit it Gary, I was only joking. Besides, I'm your superior."

"You sure don't act like it…" Gary mumbled.

"I heard that. Now beat it, I'll talk to these guys alone."

"Whatever. Later Ash." Gary shrugged and left the room.

"Bah, no respect. Anyway Ash, allow me to properly introduce myself. I'm known as Boss man, the leader of Team Nova."

"What is Team Nova anyway?" Ash wondered. "I've been hearing about them here and there, but I don't know much about them at all."

"Makes sense. We're pretty picky about who we let know of our presence…well, that's when are certain group of kids is NOT blowing everything to smithereens! I feel I can trust you kids, so I'll tell you…" Boss man was about to start explaining when a message appeared on his computer. He glanced over the contents and grunted in annoyance. "Sorry Ash, but the idiots up at the government HQ wants to hear from me. Have Gary take you to meet the rest of the group. I'll meet up with you guys shortly. GARY!" Boss man's voice boomed.

Gary opened the door, frowning slightly. "You don't have to yell. I'm right here."

"Take these kids to meet the others. I got something to take care of."

"You got it. Let's go Ash." Gary motioned his hand for Ash and the rest to follow him. They walked down a path following to the basement, leading to underground lobby area, where Gary's teammates often go to hang out. There, Ash saw the members of the Team Nova. Brendan sat at a round table, engrossed in a very complicated looking book. Rui was cheering Wes and Ritchie on, who were playing very competitively in a video game.

"Hey!" Gary made a loud whistle, gaining his teammate's attention. "We've got some new guest for the night. This is Ash, Misty and Brock." He introduced "Ash, I would like to introduce you to the elite members of Team Nova. I'm the squad leader of the group."

Ash noticed the silver haired boy playing the game and pointed in surprise. "It's you again!"

"What's up Ash? Glad to see you're still alive!" Wes said.

"You're the one who almost killed me several times!"

"Ah, I see you've gotten acquainted with Wes. He's our weapons specialist and spearhead for assaults." Gary informed.

"Yep, that's me!" Wes patted on Brendan's shoulder. "This here is Brendan Birch, master genius and inventor, also my brother!"

"I keep telling you! We're NOT brothers!" Brendan bellowed.

"Don't worry about it. He always denies the fact, though deep down, he knows the truth…" Wes mentioned on the side to Ash.

"That is not a fact!"

"Wait a minute, Birch as in Professor Birch from Hoenn?" Ash asked.

"Yes. He is my grandfather." Brendan answered.

"Ahem! Don't you mean _our_ grandfather?" Wes corrected.

Brendan sighed tiredly. "Could we finish our introductions? This conversation is going nowhere…"

"Anyway," Gary started, sweat-dropping, "The mech pilot who saved us earlier is her, Rui." He pointed to the girl who was standing next to Wes, waving cheerfully.

"Glad to meet ya!" Rui chimed merrily.

Immediately, Brock was starry eyed and introducing himself to the girl. "Hello our precious savior. My name is Brock, and if you aren't busy later, how about we—"

_Click-click!_

Everyone sweat-dropped when Wes pressed his gun against Brock's head. "How about you two…what?" Wes growled lowly.

Brock trembled under the touch of the cold metal on the back of his head. "Err…hehehe…how about we stay as friends from a distance.…?"

"That's what I thought." Wes guided Brock away from Rui, keeping a laser-like focus on the victim.

"Um…perhaps I should've mentioned earlier that Wes is kinda protective over Rui." Gary mentioned.

"That certainly would've helped." Brock sighed in relief when Wes put his gun back in the holster.

"Wow! Wes is so cool!" Rui cheered.

"I don't think cool is the word for it…" Ash whispered to Gary, who nodded.

"Of course, I don't need an introduction, right Ash?" Ritchie made himself known by waving.

"Ritchie!" Ash, Misty and Brock gasped.

"The one and only! I'm the long-range support of the group."

"That's pretty cool." That's when Ash remembered something, taking a look at his metal gauntlet. "Oh right, Wes, here's the thing you let me borrow earlier." Ash took off the arm guard and handed it back to Wes.

"Thanks Ash. I appreciate it." Wes thanked.

Rui was surprised when she saw it. "But Wes, isn't that…?"

"Yeah, but that was a long time ago. Besides, it was for a good cause."

"Say, what is that thing anyway?" Misty pondered.

"This?" Wes placed the guard back on his arm. "It's just an old relic. Nothing special…"

"Wes…" Rui knew fully well what the item was, and it was more than just "nothing special". It was a symbol of the adventures she and Wes been through before joining Team Nova. She decided to say nothing about it, knowing how personal the relic was to him.

"I take it these guys are giving you a warm welcome?" Boss man inquired, standing directly behind the group.

"So Boss man, how did it go?" Wes asked.

"Bothersome. The head council doesn't understand the meaning of patience."

"Um…could someone please tell me what Team Nova is?" Ash asked.

"Oh right. I did promise I would tell you. We're a special ops group hand picked by the highest government officials to carry out the task of completing critical missions. Each soldier here has an amazing amount of potential and passed all of the most rigorous and difficult test, earning them the title best of the best."

"That sounds so cool!" Ash remembered a certain detail, which made him curious. "If it's not too much trouble, could you tell me why you guys and Team Shadow are against each other?"

"Why that's quite simple. Team Shadow is nothing but a bunch of annoying chicks, pretty boys, and pansies that constantly get in our way. They often sabotage, assassinate, and steal from many of the big corporations and government installations. They're nothing but criminals who constantly cause trouble for us. If it weren't for them, Team Rocket, Magma, and Aqua would've been long gone. My advice to you is to avoid them the best you can. You'll only get screwed in the end."

Unfortunately for Ash, avoiding them was impossible, especially after finding out some of his best friends were a part of Team Shadow. Did that mean May was also an assassin? Those skills and weapons she possessed, they weren't for show. She could easily kill someone if she wanted to. What was really going on with her?

"Hmm…" Brendan glanced at Ash, Misty and Brock's clothing, eyeing their detail. "Hey, you three are actually going around dressed like that?"

The gang looked down at their clothes and then back at Brendan, confused. "What do you mean? We've always dressed like this." Misty informed.

"Boss man, may I?" Brendan requested.

Boss man knew exactly what he was planning, and liked the idea. "Actually, that's a great idea. You have my permission."

"You three, follow me." Brendan motioned for Ash and his friends to follow him. After crossing a few halls, the group arrived in a large room filled with special gadgets, equipment, weapons, and just about anything else imaginable. The room was a grayish, metallic color with a few lights illuminating the room.

"Whoa…where did you get all of this stuff, Ebay?" Brock wondered.

"Actually, I made all of this myself. Everything you see here is custom made." Brendan answered.

Everyone gasped in shock. "You made all of these?"

"Yeah. Alright, first off, Ash, come with me." Brendan showed Ash a machine, which resembled more of a stand with a large ring horizontally placed in the middle. "I'll need you to stand inside for a moment."

"Okay." Ash did as requested and stood in the middle of the ring. "Now what?"

"Strip." Brendan requested simply.

Ash's jaw dropped. "Say WHAT?"

"You heard me. Everything but your underwear, off."

"Look, I don't care how many sick fantasies you probably had about guys stripping in front of you, but I don't swing that way." Ash crossed his arms defiantly.

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

"I don't care. I'm not dropping my pants for your sick and twisted amusement and that's final!"

Brendan sighed. "I expected as much." He walked over to one of the tables and picked up a long, thin saber with a red, velvet sheath. "Now, if you don't stand still, you'll surely die."

Ash swallowed hard, not liking where this is going. "That's it, let me out of—"

_CHING!_

Brendan's sword moved in a blur like motion, undetectable by the untrained eye. When he sheathed the sword, all of Ash's clothes fell apart except for his hat. Unfortunately, that included his underwear. Brendan sweat-dropped. "Perhaps I over did it a bit…"

"EEK!" Misty blushed furiously as she covered her eyes with her hands, but not without making just enough room to peek. Brock chuckled at how ridiculous Ash looked, dancing around in nothing but a hat, desperately trying to retain whatever dignity was left.

"Ah…! My poor clothes…" Ash cried, feeling cold and humiliated.

"Now we can get started." Brendan stepped over to the machine and pressed a few buttons. For the next few moments, the ring glowed bright yellow and started moving up and down while spinning and scanning Ash.

Ash glared at Brendan while still trying to cover himself. "Quit staring at me you sick freak!"

"I'm trying to analyze your body for measurements and physical properties so I can outfit you with clothes that'll protect you better."

"Analyzing is EXACTLY what I want you to stop doing!" Ash yelled. Brendan ignored him as he continued to scan Ash's body for measurements.

"_Hehehe, looking mighty cold there Ash."_ Satoshi joked, chuckling.

"_I'll like to see how you like being in this situation_!" Ash shot mentally.

"_Yeah, I bet you would you sicko." _The spirit scoffed.

Misty was peeking through her fingers when she noticed Kasumi staring shamelessly at Ash. _"Don't just stand there gawking at him!"_ She yelled telepathically.

"_This doesn't bother me. I'm used to seeing men naked, this is nothing new."_ Kasumi noticed the shocked look Misty gave her and frowned._ "I didn't mean THAT! Men and women dressed in the same locations rather than separate rooms. This is normal."_

Misty gave her a sly look. _"You've been checking guys out in the locker room, haven't you?"_

Kasumi averted her gaze, feeling rather embarrassed. _"…Can't a woman look without being labeled a pervert?" _

After Ash was done, Brendan tossed him a pair of normal clothes, giving him some sense of decency. He then turned to Brock and Misty, bouncing the sword on top of his shoulder. "Alright, who's next?"

Brock and Misty sweat-dropped heavily. They really didn't want to end up like Ash. Misty was especially uncomfortable with the thought. "You expect me to take off my clothes in front of you? You're crazy!" She denied.

"There are two separate machines over there. They have covers, so you don't have to worry about showing anything…" Brendan took a second look at Misty and shook his head. "Well…you don't have to undress in front of us anyway…."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Misty interrogated.

"Nothing special…**COUGH-**concave-**COUGH**." Brendan coughed purposely.

"WHY YOU!" Both Ash and Brock had to hold Misty back from attacking Brendan.

Something Brendan said earlier suddenly clicked in Ash's head. He gasped and pointed accusingly at Brendan. "You had those machines to cover people up the entire time! I knew you were a sick freak! You just wanted to see me naked, didn't you?"

Brendan gave Ash a blank stare, blinking a few times. "Actually," He turned away, scratching the back of his head, "…I forgot."

Ash, Misty and Brock face-faulted. "Yeah, sure, a _real_ convenient time for you to forget!" Ash mumbled.

Both Brock and Misty were about to get into the machines when Misty shot Brock a dangerous glare. "Oh, and Brock, if I see a hint of that line you call an eye peek at me, I'll find those eyes hidden however deep in your eye socket and rip them out!"

"Hey, I'm not that bad! Sheesh, you guys pick on me way too much." Brock complained, getting into the machine. After the two got scanned, they were immediately given new clothes to sleep in.

"Alright. By the time you wake up tomorrow, I'll give you three a parting gift." Brendan glanced at his watch and grunted. "It's getting a bit late. I'll show you three to your room." Brendan guided the group through another path of corridors, leading them towards their resting quarters. The room had three beds, a closet, dresser and bathroom. It was simple, but better than nothing. "These are the guest rooms. It's not much, but you can do what you like. You all are probably exhausted from your battle earlier, so I'll leave you to rest." He left the three to their own devices, having a lot of work ahead of him for the night.

Ash awoke in the middle of the night. He glanced at one of the beds to see Brock, clutching onto a pillow as though his life depended on it. Ash was about to wake up Brock when the tanned breeder started grinning to himself.

"Don't worry Nurse Joy! I'll never let you go!" Brock declared in his sleep.

'Err…on second thought. I think I'll let him sleep.' Ash glanced at the other bed Misty slept in, only to find her gone. "Satoshi….hey Satoshi…you awake…?" He whispered quietly so no one else would hear him.

_"…No…please leave a message after the beep…beep…"_ Satoshi shot flatly.

Ash groaned with impatience. "Aw man, I hate these things….hey Satoshi, Misty's gone from her bed, and if you get this message—"

_"I'm awake you moron!"_ Satoshi yelled in annoyance.

"Stop calling me names!" Ash hissed

Satoshi ignored him as he glanced over at Misty's empty bed, an unreadable expression on his face. _"Maybe they're restless. If Kasumi's restless, then she would go outdoors somewhere. Possibly the roof?"_

"Alright, let's check there…"

Team Nova Headquarters – Roof

Misty sat near the edge of the building, gazing at the fluorescent lights coming from the buildings of Viridian City. The city was bustling with lights and business, as always. The red head sighed as she hugged her knees and placed her chin on top.

"_What troubles you?"_ Kasumi asked, sitting next to her partner.

Misty had a serious look on her face as she spoke. "How does it feel to be separated from your past? I mean, didn't you have family, friends….dreams?"

Kasumi was silent for a beat, mentally reflecting on what she remembered of her past. _"…Friends, family, dreams…they are all dead, and were so when I used to be alive…"_

Misty shifted uncomfortably. "Oh…I'm sorry to hear that."

_"It's alright. They were all victims in the war. It couldn't be avoided."_

Misty glanced at Kasumi in surprise. It was astounding how strong the spirit was. The war must've toughened her up immensely. "You are very strong." She complimented.

_"Well, I don't know if you can call it strength, but thank you."_ Kasumi wasn't fooled by Misty's hesitation._ "Why don't you tell me what's wrong instead of dodging the subject?"_

Misty sighed in defeat. "It's kind of stupid, but I'm starting to get the feeling that this journey will get more and more difficult. I remember years back, when I used to travel with Ash for a long while, the battles were pretty simple. A Pokémon battle here, a small situation there, nothing spectacular. However, we've been in this journey for only a few days and already had many close brushes with death." Her gaze was suddenly down cast, smiling weakly. "I must sound like a real coward…"

"You're actually the opposite of that Misty." Ash said from behind.

"Oh, Ash!" Misty gasped in surprise, "Why are you awake?"

"I should be asking you the same question." Ash took a seat next to Misty, looking in the same direction as her. "And what's this I'm hearing about you thinking you're a coward?"

"Err…well…It's just that…I mean…" Misty wasn't expecting Ash to listen in. The last thing she wanted was to have Ash think she's weak or something.

"I mean, you are a really strong person Misty. You never let anyone talk you down, and when they did, you always proved them wrong. When it came to support and being a friend, you're the best. How does something like that make you a coward?"

Misty smiled and closed her eyes. Leave it to Ash to show her the truth that was in front of her face. "You know, that's one thing I've always admired about you."

Ash blinked in surprise. "Admire?"

Misty nodded. "Yeah. You have that uncanny ability to bring light into just about anything you put your mind into. Sometimes, I wish I had that ability. I know how short-tempered I can be sometimes…"

"More like all the time…" Ash pointed out jokingly.

"Watch it Ash! I'm trying to have a moment!" Misty growled.

Ash grinned sheepishly. "Ehehe, I was just kidding! Please, continue."

"Hmph! Anyway, sometimes, I just feel like there's more I can do. I don't want to be just some helpless girl who can't help her friends, but someone who you could always count on to be by your side. After fighting with Leon, I couldn't help but feel nervous. He was just so powerful; I didn't think we could beat him at first. I just wish there was more I could do to help…"

Ash continued to stare at her with an unreadable expression, as though he was thinking of what to say. Though he wouldn't say it out loud, he was surprised he managed to survive so far. From escaping a Team Rocket base, chasing Team Magma on the highway, to fighting a freaky looking half human, everything was hectic, and he could've easily lost his life. What scared him most was the fact any of his friends could have been killed.

"I gotta level with you Misty; I was scared a lot of those times too. There were times where I thought I wasn't going to make it. But you know, that wasn't my main concern. During those times, I kept thinking to myself, how would my friends feel if I died? What would happen if I wasn't there to help them just as they always did for me? I could never forgive myself if anything happened to any of my friends or Pokémon, especially…you…"

"Me…?" Misty asked in surprise, reddening slightly.

"Yeah. Besides Pikachu, you were my first real friend, and one who traveled with me the longest of everyone. If it weren't for you, I would've never been able to get anywhere near this far. Knowing this, while I fight, I know I have to win, in order to help protect everyone, because we're all in this journey together…until the end…" Ash extended his hand to Misty. "Together forever?"

Misty smiled and didn't need more than a second to know the answer to that. She gripped his hand and nodded. "Together forever."

They both fell into a comfortable silence. However, the moment their eyes connected, both of them froze, their hearts suddenly going into overdrive. Neither knew what was going on, or how to even respond, except to just continue staring into each others eyes…

_STOMP!_

Ash and Misty whirled around to see a huge, rather poorly constructed, robot with four, long, crab-like claws, towering over to two. The mech had four, thick steel legs and a single, glass eye in the middle, revealing three very familiar people.

"_Thank the gods!"_ Satoshi praised, _"I was about to throw up after listening to the two brats go on and on about crap!"_

"_Satoshi, you primitive jerk! That moment was incredibly sweet, unlike you!"_ Kasumi insulted.

"_Now is NOT the time for this!" _Ash and Misty chastised.

"Prepare for trouble!"

"And make it double!"

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people's within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

"Meowth! That's right!"

Satoshi blinked, staring blankly at Team Rocket. _"What…the hell…are they talking about?"_

"_I have no clue. Such strange creatures live in this era_…" Kasumi thought, bewildered by Team Rocket's strange behavior.

Ash and Misty sighed. _"You have no idea…"_

"Alright brat, hand over your Pikachu!" James demanded.

"Sorry, no Pikachu here." Ash informed them. "Now, if you would be kind enough to leave us in peace, we'll be going now…."

"Not so fast!" Meowth denied. The robot stood in front of the door leading downstairs. "Don't think we've forgotten what you did to us back in Pewter City!"

"Oh yeah, that. Actually, that was kinda funny." Ash admitted, snickering.

Slowly, James started chuckling as well. "He does have a point."

"Who's side are you on?" Jessie yelled incredulously.

"Quit yer dawdling! Let's just capture these kids and give them to the boss!" Meowth commanded.

Jessie and James gave the cat Pokémon a questioning glance. "Give him to the boss? Why?"

"Don't you see? Imagine the look on the boss's face when he sees his arch enemy before him, and…" While Meowth continued his dreamy rant, Satoshi was disturbed.

_"Tell me Ash…are you cursed or do you always run into the strangest possible people on the daily basis?"_

Ash sighed. "I think it's both…"

_"And what's this "boss" I keep hearing about? Who is Team Rocket? And why do they have such ridiculous outfits?"_

"Giovanni is the boss of an evil organization bent on stealing all the valuable Pokémon in the world and using them as weapons for their own schemes. As for the outfits, you got me on that one…"

_"That's all? Tch, I could do better in my sleep…"_ Kasumi scoffed. She sweat-dropped when she noticed the stares she was getting from her three allies. _"Er…I mean, oh no, how horrible!"_

"Ash," Misty called, "Are they done yet?"

"Let's see…nope….wait, almost….yeah, they're done." Ash answered.

"I hope you twerps are ready to lose!" Meowth taunted.

"Grr…I told you to stop calling us twerps!" Ash yelled.

"Nyah-nyah, it's not like you're going to do anything about it!" James laughed.

"We'll see about that…" Ash reached for where his Pokéballs were….only to realize he forgot them. "Uh…Misty? Do you have any Pokémon on you?"

"Nope." Misty answered in a worried tone. This could be a problem…

The mech's crab arms lunged at Ash and Misty, who rolled out of the way to dodge the attack. Ash growled as he continued to dodge the attacks. He new fully well he didn't stand a chance against the robot without his Pokémon. Team Rocket was blocking the entrance, preventing escape, leaving Misty and himself with only two options: Dodge Team Rocket long enough, hoping someone hears the battle, or attempt to get through and escape somehow. Both options were only guesstimates, which wasn't good.

"_Ash,"_ Satoshi called, _"Perhaps there's a weakness in the mech somewhere. Try looking for one."_

"Okay. You heard that Misty?" Ash asked.

"Yeah. I'll go left, you go right." With that, the two spilt up and attempted to search the mech while dodging the attacks. Unfortunately, no real weak spot was found. The only spot which could be considered a weak spot was the glass eye, which would give access to inside the mech, it would be impossible to do it with their bare hands.

"Gotcha!" Jessie exclaimed. One of the robotic arms successfully captured Misty, putting her in a vice grip.

"No, Misty!" Ash cried.

"Now why don't you be a good boy and come quietly, or the girl gets it!" Meowth threatened. The claw tightened on Misty, making her cry out in agony.

"Grr…" Ash's fist trembled with fury. Taking Misty hostage was low, even for them. They weren't going to get away with it! But what could he do? He only had his hands and feet to take on a giant machine, with no chance of being able to do any damage.

"_Ash, there is one way to save her…" _Satoshi spoke mysteriously.

"What can I do?"

_"I was saving this for an emergency situation, but I guess this situation calls for that. Ash, you must perform a Spirit-synchronization with me."_

"Spirit-sync? What's that?"

_"There's no time to explain! Quickly, concentrate as much as you can on me. Picture yourself combining with me!"_

"Alright…" Ash closed his eyes and tightened of his fist, concentrating on the spirit. He could feel Satoshi's strength flowing through him, making him stronger! A dark aura swirled around Ash, embracing his body with Satoshi's power. Suddenly, his skin started changing into a tanned color and the tips of his hair turned red, growing a few inches longer. Ash successfully performed his first spirit-sync!

"What the?" Team Rocket stared in surprise as Ash's body changed color.

"Ash?" Misty was just as surprised. Ash looked exactly as he did when he first transformed at the Viridian highway.

"Whoa…" Ash stared at his body, surprised. "What kind of power is this?"

_"I've just lent you some of my power. Unfortunately, you haven't gotten strong enough to make it last long. Hurry and use my power to save Misty!"_ Satoshi rushed.

"I don't know what's going on, but this changes nothing!" The mech's crab hand dove at Ash, ready to capture him.

_SMACK!_

Ash punched the mech's crab hand away and ran at the mech. Suddenly, an attack appeared in Ash's mind. "Shadow Kick!" His legs suddenly had a black aura around it as he jumped in the air and landed a kick on the glass eye of Team Rocket's robot.

_CRACK!_

"IMPOSSIBLE!" Team Rocket gasped. Ash managed to damage the protective glass of the mech!

Ash jumped off the mech and avoided another swung from the mech. "Whoa…I didn't know I could do that!"

Satoshi was equally surprised. Even with the Spirit-sync, Ash shouldn't have been able to do that at such an early level. The boy amazed him more and more. _"Bravo Ash, but the battle isn't over. You have only five minutes before you lose your hold over the synchronization. You have to hurry!"_

Ash was on his feet, his fist raised in a boxing stance. Now he and Team Rocket's robot was on an equal fighting level! "Oh yeah! Now this is a real battle!" With less than five minutes to spare, he had no time to lose!

Two of the crab arms swept at Ash from both sides, forcing him to jump over the strike. While he was in the air, another claw lunged at Ash and almost caught him when he maneuvered over the attack and landed on it. Ash jumped off the claw and landed another Shadow Kick on the windshield.

_CRACK!_

Ash jumped off and landed on his feet, only to be captured by a claw. "Grr….HAAA!" He yelled as the claw tightened around him. With all of his strength, Ash slowly started to break free and broke the hand in half! Not wasting any time, he ran towards the claw that held Misty captive. "Shadow Kick!"

_SMACK!_

"ARG!" Ash was smacked down by one of the remaining claws and crashed hard on the ground. Just as swiftly, he was back on his feet and ran towards Misty from another angle. One of the claws was about to strike Ash from the side.

_"Ash, to your left!"_ Satoshi warned.

"Thanks! Shadow Kick!" Ash jump kicked the claw with his powered up legs, denting the claw. He then used the pincer to give himself enough momentum to boost towards Misty. When he landed on the claw, he placed his hands inside and started separating the pincers. 'Come on…open already…!' The pincers weren't budging until Misty started trying to free herself as well. With their combined strength, the claw started to separate, allowing Misty to drop down and out of the pincer's clutches.

"No way!" Team Rocket gasped, stupefied.

_"Ash, you must hurry! You only have one minutes before our synchronization is broken. Finish them off!"_ Satoshi rushed.

"Okay!" Ash turned to Team Rocket's mech and started dashing for the final blow while dodging all of the attacks Team Rocket could throw at him. "This is it! SHADOW KICK! HAAA!" His legs grew in strength as he performed a powerful drop kick against Team Rocket's protective shield.

_SHATTER!_

The glass shattered into pieces, gaining Ash entry inside. The three members of Team Rocket sweat-dropped in fear as Ash cracked his knuckles, grinning mischievously. "Now…not only did you capture Misty, not only did you interrupt us and cause us trouble, but you just HAD to call me a twerp...heh, I'm going to enjoy this…"

Outside the mech, Misty could hear screams and much chaos coming from inside the mech. She gasped when she saw the floor below them starting to crack. This had trouble written all over it…

The floor suddenly caved in and the mech plummeted down the building, all the way to the vehicle hanger of the building.

_CRASH!_

Team Rocket and Ash fell out of the broken mech, dizzied from the fall. As they regained focus in their vision, everyone gazed upward at the whole they fell, which was very wide. A small rock fell off one of the top floors and landed on Rui's mech, creating a miniscule scratch on it.

_SLAM!_

James, Jessie, Meowth, Ash and Misty turned to the door, seeing Rui with a horrifyingly angry glare and a red aura showing her killing intent. "ALRIGHT, WHO PUT A SCRATCH ON MY PRECIOUS?" The young girl roared.

Ash and Misty stepped a good few meters away from Team Rocket, pointing at them. "They did it!"

One look at the girl's face and Team Rocket knew they were about to meet their fate. "N-n-n-now let's be reasonable! We'll gladly clean up that tiny little—eep!" James stopped suddenly and gasped in terror when the angered mech pilot jumped inside her mech and aimed every missile and explosive firepower she had equipped.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR SCRATCHING MY PRECIOUS!" The girl screamed, launching her entire payload of firepower upon Team Rocket.

_**BOOM!**_

Team Rocket was send flying high in the air at breakneck speed. "WE'RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!" They screamed, disappearing in the distance. Ash and Misty sweat-dropped at Rui's display of rage. They really didn't want to be on that girl's bad side.

"Ash, Misty!" Brock called, followed by a few other people from Team Nova. "What on earth happened?"

"Team Rocket, that's what happened." Ash answered flatly. When he saw the faces of Team Nova, he was surprised with their stoic attitudes. "Aren't you guys surprised or shocked that most of your base was just destroyed?"

"There was worse. Just like that time Wes made us play his version of hide and seek." Brendan cringed at the memory, as did the other members of Team Nova.

"What's so scary about that?" Misty inquired.

"He hid bombs all over the place and we had to find them."

Ash, Misty and Brock were shocked and speechless. They shot Wes a look of insanity. Wes however, shrugged nonchalantly. "That was over 2 years ago when I was just a rookie. Now we play laser tag!"

Ash and co. gave each other a questioning glance. Perhaps it wasn't best to ask.

"Well, if everyone here is done standing around, let's get to bed already." Boss man yawned.

"I agree. Let's go…" With that, Ash, along with everyone else, left for their designated rooms to sleep.

Team Nova Headquarters – R&D Room

The next day, Ash and the gang met Brendan in his R&D room to get their new equipment. Brendan showed them a table with a fresh pair of clothes and shoes which looked exactly like their old ones. Placed on top of the clothes was a pair of fingerless gloves for them. Ash's gloves were black, Misty had orange ones and Brock's were brown.

"Now, while these may look like your old clothes, they come with special enhancements. I'll explain what they do once you put them on. Go ahead." Brendan said. He frowned when he caught Ash's glare. "I'm not talking about getting dressed in front of me idiot! Just go over there and change…" He pointed over to multiple stalls for people to get dressed. Ash was about to enter his stall when he started searching all over the place, looking for something. "What are you looking for?"

"I'm looking for any secret cameras. I'm not taking any chances with you!" Ash shot.

"I don't care about your inferior body! Just get in there and change already! There are no cameras inside!"

"Hmph, yeah right…creep…" Ash mumbled as he stepped inside the stall. After a few minutes, everyone emerged from the stalls in their new clothes, shoes and gloves.

"As you notice, your clothes are heavier than normal. This is because your clothes are now outfitted with special protection equivalent to a bullet proof vest, not to mention woven with silk for extra comfort. If you take a look at your gloves, you'll notice a silver plate on the back of your gloves. This is a special alloy which is best use for defense against blades and attacks. It can double as a knuckle guard to make your punches more damaging. What's really special are your shoes. These are actually infused with the latest in aero technology. Not only do they allow maximum comfort, but increase your agility and give you a special ability. I'll demonstrate." Brendan jumped high in the air and across a table. He was about to land on the floor when he performed another jump in mid air, and then landed on the other side of the second table that was ahead of the first. "As you can see, I've performed a double jump. To do this, you must simply press the X button to jump, and then press X again to perform the double jump."

Ash, Misty and Brock gave Brendan a confused glance. "X button?"

"Oops, wrong tutorial. My bad." Brendan apologized abashedly. "Alright, when you jump in the air and start to fall, the special tech in your shoes create a miniature hover effect when your feet accelerate past the normal gradual speed of falling, thereby giving you the ability to step on the air temporarily. Simply, if you want to double jump, just do it as though you were jumping from the ground. Ash, why don't you try?"

"Um…okay." Ash took the same position behind two tables and made a long jump over the first. Taking Brendan's advice, he thrust his feet downward and could feel himself hover over the ground slightly. He used this advantage to make himself jump again and over the second table. "Whoa…how cool! Thanks Brendan!"

"It's no problem. Consider it a gift from us. Now that that's settled, you should go ahead and pick up your Pokémon from the center. Everyone else is a bit busy with their task, so they can't see you off. I wish you the best of luck on your quest." Brendan extended his hand.

Ash smiled and grasped it firmly. "Yeah. I hope things go well for you here. See ya later!" With that, Ash left with Misty and Brock towards the Pokémon center. After picking their Pokémon up from the Pokémon center, the gang started towards their next destination: The Viridian forest!

"Wait a minute!" Ash exclaimed, stopping in mid stepped. "…Brendan called my body inferior!"

Misty and Brock face-faulted. "Ash, you just now realized that?" Misty sighed in agitation. Ash was about to storm back to the Team Nova base when Misty grabbed him by the collar and started dragging him towards the forest. "What am I going to do with you…?"

Team Nova Headquarters – Boss man's Office

"Hm? What's this?" Boss man heard a ping sound from his computer, detecting a message for him. After reading the contents, he immediately picked up the phone. "Gary! Get your team to my office immediately!"

Minutes later, Gary, Wes, Rui, Brendan and Ritchie were lined up in front of Boss man's desk. "What's with the hurry Boss man? Got us a new mission?" Wes asked.

Boss man nodded. "Yeah. The people up at the head council made a decision, concerning Ash and his friends."

"Huh?" The five teens glanced at each other curiously. "What decision?"

"It would seem that they've heard about Ash and his accomplishments throughout the years he's traveled. All of his success leads the council to believe that he has great potential and could help in our aid to safeguard the world. Of course, so does the enemy. Gary, you said some powerful guy was chasing after Ash for the shards, right?"

"Yeah." Gary nodded.

"That's another thing. Apparently, Ash is rather important in everyone's eyes, and they either want him for themselves or want him dead. This is where the decision comes, along with our new assignment, a Level S mission."

"A Level S assignment?" Everyone gasped. Level S assignments were the highest ranked missions. While Team Nova was famous for completing high ranked missions, this would be their first Level S assignment. "What's the new mission?"

Boss man chuckled under his breath. "It's going to be our toughest one…"

Team Nova's Level S mission: Safeguard Ash and company through their quest to collect the shards!

* * *

And that's the end of chapter 7. Whew, this chapter took a while, so I hope you're happy with the results. I promise that the next chapter will be more promising. Don't forget to review! 

Disclaimer: This will stand for the rest of this fic. I do not own Pokémon or any songs that I use in this fic. All original characters and the story itself are mine, so hands off ya buzzards!


	8. Burn out!

_**Chapter 8 – Burn out!**_

Team Shadow's Arch Angel – May's Room

May lay awake in her bed, staring wistfully at the white, metallic ceiling. The darkness in her small room only illuminated by the desk lamp next to her laptop, which was used to create reports, check emails, and other miscellaneous things. Compared to the other agent's rooms, hers was very empty. She didn't have a TV, radio or even any video game equipment. However, May found her room to be her own little sanctuary after coming home from a mission, a nice, quiet place where she could recollect her thoughts and relax.

It had been a full day since she had completed her most recent mission, but several days since she had seen Ash, which disheartened her a little. Team Shadow was an underground organization that was made to go above the law to save those in need while taking down the corrupted and evil. It wasn't exactly the occupation she always dreamt about, but life as a Team Shadow agent was actually pretty fulfilling. It was as though she was doing charity, which consisted of dodging cops, lurking in the shadows, and even going as far as assassinating head leaders of a gang or mafia. A busy life it was, but at least she was surrounded by those she could call a family, especially Clair, Melody and Duplica. However, no matter how close they were, no one could take the place in her heart that she reserved for Ash. If only she could travel with him again, maybe then she would have the courage to tell him how she feels.

_Knock, knock, knock!_

"The door's unlocked!" May answered, recognizing the rhythm of knocks. The metal door slid open, revealing her two partners, Melody and Duplica. Soon after May joined Team Shadow, she was assigned to Melody and Duplica's group as team leader. The three had been great friends ever since.

"Hiya lazy!" Duplica chimed, being her merry self.

"Hey guys, what's up?" May asked.

"We came to tell you that Clair wants to have a talk with us, but first…" Melody took a seat on May's bed, along with Duplica, both staring down the brunette. "You gotta level with us, how did you feel about seeing Ash again?"

May blushed, but also tossed them a slightly irritated look. The main problem about having best friends was they were always nosy. "Probably the same for all of us, surprised. And just why is it you guys are prying into my love life?"

"Because it's fun!" Both Melody and Duplica answered.

"Yeah, for you guys. Anyway, rather than sticking your noses in my business, let's go and see Clair." May got off the bed and headed towards the main meeting room. There, the three met with their team commander, Clair.

"Good morning girls." Clair greeted.

"Morning Clair!" The girls saluted.

"I heard you wanted to see us?" May inquired.

"Yes. As you know, Ash now has possession of not only the GS ball, but a few shards of the Final Destiny. Some of the higher ups feel that this responsibility is too big for someone so young, and they want us to handle the situation. This mission is considered high priority, and it is to get the GS ball and shards away from Ash. But, there is a problem with that. We all know Ash, especially about how stubborn he is. I doubt he would just give us the items, especially if he had any contact with Team Nova. This gives us only two options: We steal it or take it by force."

"Wait. By force, you don't mean…"

"There's no easy way to say this so I'll be blunt. We might have to kill Ash."

May gasped at the thought. "That's insane! Team Shadow is a group that exists to protect people! Killing Ash just for some stupid ball and diamonds is ludicrous and against those beliefs!" She exclaimed, angered by the thought.

"I know how you feel, but you need to take a look at the full picture. A lot of people are trying to get their hands on those things. There have been reports that people have died because of the items Ash has in his possession. The longer he holds onto those items, the more people will be involved, which means more fatalities. I'm not saying we have to kill Ash, but if it comes down to that, we might not have a choice. According to the reports, Ash was last seen heading towards the Viridian forest, which happened to be about 4 days ago. We are a few hours away. Now, I'll ask you this, since it will be your responsibility. Will you accept this mission, knowing that killing Ash might be an unavoidable option?"

May thought hard on the question. If she refused, she might never see Ash again, and people will be constantly involved in the struggle to obtain Final Destiny. However, if she accepts, she will be able to see him again, but might have to resort to assassinating him. Both choices were almost impossible to make. Either way, she would lose something. There was only one real choice to make. "I…accept the mission."

"Are you sure? Once you accept, you cannot turn back."

"Yes."

"…Alright. We will be arriving near the Viridian forest in a matter of hours. Suit up and prepare for deployment."

"Yes, Madam Clair!" The three girls saluted before turning and heading off to the armory.

Clair sat in a chair, releasing a heavy sigh. She knew fully well about May's feelings towards Ash. No matter how much emotional training the girl had, there was no way this mission was going to be easy. "I hope you know what you are doing May…"

Inside the locker room area, May was getting dressed and putting on her equipment in silence. Melody and Duplica shot May a worried glance, unsure if whether May was really okay with the decision. It was a very tough call.

"May?" Melody called, worried for her friend.

"Don't worry about me. I'll be alright." May reassured, smiling for them. Melody and Duplica glanced at each other and said nothing more as they continued to get dressed. Though May was smiling for them, inside, she was in turmoil. She could only hope the worst case scenario didn't occur.

Viridian Forest – Day 4

Ash, Misty and Brock had been traveling in the Viridian forest for what seemed like an eternity. Brock and Misty were shooting Ash a dangerous glare, all for one reason.

"Ash, you know as well as I do that we're lost." Misty sighed.

"No we're not. As a matter of fact, we should be out of here any minute, so relax." Ash assured, feeling confident.

"How can you be so sure?" Brock asked.

"It's quite simple. If you look down here, you'll see footprints of the past travelers. All we have to do is follow them until we get out of here."

Upon closer inspection, Misty's eyebrow furrowed in slight agitation. "Ash," She started slowly, "What can you tell us about these footprints?"

Ash stopped walking and knelt in front of the prints. "Well let's see, there are six prints, meaning that the party was a group of three. If you take a good look at the depth, their weight is a lot similar to ours. They all wore sneakers apparently. That's about all I can tell, why do you ask?"

Misty knelt in front of Ash and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Well, I gotta admit, you've certainly learned a lot about footprints and such, but there's only one problem…THESE ARE OUR FOOTPRINTS YOU MORON!" She began to strangle the navigationally-challenged Ash. It took all of Brock's strength to free Ash of his impeding doom.

"_This is supposed to be my distant relative? Just how badly was the gene pool contaminated during my absence?"_ Satoshi grumbled.

"Hey, Satoshi, is something on your mind?" Ash asked.

"_Well, besides trying to find a way to kill you and still manage to exist, there was something about that dog boy, Leon. I can't put my finger, but there's something about him that's familiar."_

"_Ah, so you noticed too?"_ Kasumi asked. _"I wonder if he's a…no, that can't be right."_

"Huh?" Ash felt something vibrate in his pocket. It was the Pokédex. It detected a shard nearby! "Awesome! There's a shard of the Final Destiny nearby! Let's try to find it!" Ash and the group followed the beeps of the radar, which slowly started to grow faster as they got closer to the shard. 10 minutes into the search, something caught Pikachu's eye. The mouse jumped off Ash's shoulder and shot after the source.

When Pikachu approached the object, his eyes brightened in surprise. "Pikapi! Pika pikachu!"

"Found something Pikachu?" Ash went towards the object Pikachu found. "Alright! It's a shard!" He exclaimed. Excited, he knelt down to pick it up…only for another hand to snatch up the shard he was about to get. Surprised, slowly looked up in surprise. A well built, dark skinned man was standing before Ash, wearing a black muscle shirt and long shorts. His hands and feet were wrapped in a black cloth which was ragged from age and battle. The man's chiseled yet handsome face was partially hidden by his sunglasses and bandanna, covering his eyes and thick red hair. A small backpack held onto his back, and behind that was a thick sword that was a little taller than him. A thick, reddish sash with black tiger stripes was wrapped firmly around his waist.

"Hm? Well, isn't this a surprise. I didn't think someone else was after these things."

"I can say the same for you." Ash said, eyeing the man cautiously.

"I wonder…why is it that you look so familiar?" The tanned man leaned towards Ash's face, scrutinizing him carefully. His eyes soon lit up in surprise. "I can't believe this! Is that you Satoshi? What are you doing with this look-alike?"

"Ah! You can see him?" Ash gasped, along with everyone else.

"Of course. Satoshi, it's been awhile. Don't you recognize me?"

"_Unreal! You're Soma, the Fire Vizier!_" Satoshi exclaimed, shocked. Upon hearing the name, Kasumi's eyes widened, in both shock and fear.

"What's a Vizier?" Ash asked.

Satoshi's expression scrunched up with worry. "_Long before my time, there existed 17 beings who were the embodiment of the elements. Fire, water, steel, and many others you would identify as the Pokémon types. It was there combined powers that created us guardians. It's just our luck that we have to face the Fire Vizier, one of the most fearsome warriors of my time._"

"So, your memory hasn't diminished over time after all. That's good. I did hear something about you guys traveling with kids from Leon. I've also heard about you guys trying to get your hands on the Final Destiny, just like us." Soma said.

"You know Leon huh? That must make you our enemy then!" Ash took a guard pose, along with Misty and Brock.

Soma raised an eyebrow, curious yet interested. "Enemy? I'm guessing you had a run-in with Leon then. Heh, talk about sloppy. You guys don't even look injured!" The Vizier dug into his backpack and slipped on a pair of heavy, red metal gloves with metal plates and compartments all over it. When the gloves were equipped, he slammed his fist together, creating a sharp, metal clashing sound. "Looks like I'll have to change that. Be sure to give me a good fight. I haven't had one for the last few days, and I'm just itching for a battle."

"Hmph, if you're anything like Leon, then I think I can take you on, especially with this new equipment! RAH!" Ash ran towards Soma and lunged at his face.

"_Ash, STOP!_" Satoshi yelled, but it was too late.

Soma swiftly caught Ash by his shirt and lifted him towards his face. "Slow down boy, I didn't even say go yet!" With a flick, he sent Ash flying a few feet before landing roughly near his friends. Ash was both insulted and amazed. Those gauntlets looked heavy, yet Soma was able to toss him with the flick of a wrist. "Alright, first off, I'll make a bet with you guys. If you manage to defeat me, I'll give you guys my respect. However, if I beat you guys, you'll give me all your shards, cash…and that thing." Soma pointed to the hat Ash was wearing.

"My cap? Never!" Ash denied fiercely, holding onto his cap protectively. Everyone sweat-dropped.

Satoshi shook his head in shame. "_…He has some personal issues to work out. Please, just ignore him._"

"_Oh, shut up!_" Ash barked.

"That's no fair!" Misty yelled, "If you win, we lose all of our stuff, but if we win, we only get your respect! That isn't a very fair trade off!"

"Oh, but it is. For one, you guys got the advantage. You guys have Pokémon, I don't. There's more of you guys, I'm alone. Hell, I'll even give you guys a small handicap." Soma took out his sword and stabbed it into the earth and away from the battlefield. "You can use any means you want to defeat me, but I prefer something challenging. As a matter of fact, I'll even give you guys the first hit. Give it your all, or I'll be disappointed."

"So, you're giving us the first strike? We can use _anything_ we want?" Ash inquired slyly.

"Yep. And don't worry, I'm not going to use any tricks. I prefer nice, clean, brutal battles over tricks."

"Alright, you ask for it! Pikachu, use Thunder!" Ash called out. Pikachu powered up to use his most powerful attack. He was about to unleash the attack when Soma stopped them.

"Hold it!" Soma stepped away for a moment and took off his backpack. After placing it on the ground, he pulled out a small boombox and pressed a button on it, playing heavy, blood-pumping Boss Battle music. Ash, Misty, Brock and Pikachu face-faulted.

"You made us wait so you can play music?" Ash exclaimed.

"Of course! You can't very well fight at your best without some sort of motivating Boss Battle music." Soma walked back in position to receive Pikachu's attack. "Alright, now go for it!"

"Okay! Pikachu, use Thunder!"

"Pi…ka…CHUU!" Pikachu let loose a devastating wave of electricity and sent it flying towards Soma. The Fire Vizier didn't even bother to guard as the attack struck him.

_BOOM!_

The dust on the ground exploded in the air, covering Soma's features completely. "Alright! We got him!" Ash cheered.

"Got what?" Soma inquired, stepping forward from the smoke. Everyone gasped with fright. Soma's body wasn't harmed at all! "You throw a pathetic attack like that at me and expect it to actually hurt? Tch, talk about insulting. I can't believe Leon could disgrace us Viziers like that. I will show you all what real power is like! HAA!" When he charged towards Ash, the earth trembled under his steps. He dove towards Ash and prepared an uppercut strike. "Blazing…" With an uppercut, Soma sent Ash flying into the air. He jumped up with him and charged up his fist, which was engulfed in flames. "BRINGER!"

_SMASH!_

"ARGH!" Ash was sent crashing into the earth, a small burn spot on his stomach. Those two punches knocked the wind out of him, and his stomach felt like it was on fire thanks to the Vizier's fist. "Ack…what is with those gloves?"

"Ah, so you noticed. These aren't your average gauntlets. These were especially made for me. With these, I can condense my power and use it to incinerate my opponent. Care to test it?"

Misty jumped in front of Ash and took out three of her Pokéballs. "Politoed, Starmie, Corsola, use Water Gun!" After summoning her three Pokémon, they shot a powerful stream of water towards Soma, which combined to create one powerful blast of water.

Soma aimed his fist at the water attack and tightened it. Suddenly, the metal plates on the side of his wrist and on the back of his hand opened up its hatches. "Gun Flare!" Suddenly, the hatches fired off a hail of fire bullets, beating its way towards Misty's Pokémon and through the water attack! The water evaporated while some of the bullets struck the Pokémon. Through the smoke, Soma charged towards Misty and lifted her up by the shirt. He drew back his fist to and powered it up.

"Onix, use Headbutt!" Brock called out. The giant snake roared as it rushed towards Soma.

"HM!" Soma tossed Misty high in the air and pulled back his fist, aiming at Onix.

_POW!_

"RROOAARR!" Onix's head was knocked upward, temporarily stunned. Soma jumped above Onix and slammed his armored fist downward on the rock Pokémon's face. The Pokémon fell to the ground, dazed from the crushing blow to the head.

Soma glanced upward at Misty, who was beginning to fall back down towards his direction. He aimed his fist at Misty and opened the hatch. "Gun Fla—"

"SHADOW KICK!"

_SMACK!_

"ARG!" Soma staggered from the force of Ash's Shadow kick to the face.

"I gotcha Misty!" Ash leapt to catch the water Pokémon trainer just in time, landing on his feet with a slight skid. "Are you alright?"

Misty staggered a little as she slowly regained footing. "Yeah, just a bit dizzy from the fall. We can't rest yet. Let's take him down while he's off guard."

"Right. Go, Snorlax! Pick up Onix by the tail!" Ash commanded, summoning his giant Pokémon.

"Onix, use Iron Defense!" Brock called. As Snorlax gripped Onix's tail, the stone snake toughened its stone skin.

"Now swing Snorlax!"

The huge, overweight Pokémon spun in a circle to build up momentum. When the speed was high enough, Snorlax slammed Onix against Soma, who luckily guarded. The Vizier was sent flying through the forest, knocking down trees and breaking through boulders in the process!

"Ooh, now I know THAT had to hurt!" Brock commented, wincing.

"I don't care how powerful that is, that attack had to at least leave him unconscious. I hope it didn't kill him though…" Ash thought worriedly.

"Anyway, let's get out of here before he—AH!" Misty gasped as he suddenly saw something burning brightly in the distance, where Soma was sent flying. Something big was coming, and fast!

"BURNING RAVE!" Soma yelled out. He was flying towards Ash and the others, fist first and his entire body engulfed in a bright ball of flame. As the Vizier flew past trees and debris, they were either set on fire or incinerated due to the extreme heat.

Satoshi's eyes widened with fear, remembering that attack. "_GET OUT OF THE WAY!_"

"Brock, Misty, jump out of the way!" Ash cried. Brock reacted and lunged out of harms way, but Misty was frozen with fear, unable to send the message to her legs to move. Ash growled when he noticed her frozen. "Damn….MISTY!" He lunged forward and shoved Misty out of the way.

_CRASH!_

"GUH!" Ash was stuck on the stomach with the full impact of the attack, getting tossed off his feet. With the boy still on his burning fist, Soma spun around to gain momentum and slammed Ash on the ground, successfully breaking many of his bones. Soma stood up and stepped back and away from Ash, trying to get his second wind.

"ASH!" Misty immediately dashed at Ash's side and knelt next to him. When she tested to see if he had a pulse, it was extremely weak and starting to fade quickly. Ash was about to die. "No…there's got to be a way to save him! If only I wasn't so stupid and moved, he wouldn't be in this condition. NO!" She slammed her fist on the ground angrily, small droplets of tears falling down her face.

"_There's one way to save him that I can think of! Hurry and concentrate all you can on me. I'll do the rest!_" Kasumi instructed.

"Alright." Misty closed her eyes and focused as much as she could on Kasumi. Suddenly, a warm, yet powerful feeling started to grow from within. It soon enveloped her body in a bright, yellow light. When the light faded, her skin was tanned and she had silver hair. Misty had successfully performed her first spirit-sync with Kasumi!

"_Good, now place your hands on Ash's stomach and say Regenerate!_"

Misty nodded and did exactly as she was told. She gently placed her palms on Ash's injured stomach. "Regenerate!" A small, yellow aura glowed from her hands and over the wounds. A full minute passed until the glow stopped.

Ash's eyes flashed open in surprise. The searing pain of his wounds disappeared almost magically. "Satoshi, what happened to us? I thought we were going to die a minute ago."

"_Our wounds are healed. This could only mean that Misty used Kasumi's power of healing. She saved us._" Satoshi answered.

Ash looked up at Misty, who smiled gratefully at him. "Thanks Misty, I owe ya one."

"No, if anything thing. We're even. Sorry for being in the way again." Misty cast her eyes downward shamefully. "If I had just moved out of the way, you wouldn't have nearly…nearly…"

"But I didn't, and that's what counts."

"Um…guys…?" Brock called weakly. He was bruised badly and being held up by Soma. "If you guys could back me up here, I would REALLY appreciate it!"

"Brock!" Ash and Misty called in surprise. They had forgotten about the fight for a moment!

"So, you guys are finally done chatting?" With a single thrust, Soma punched Brock and sent him flying to a tree. The battered Breeder fell unconscious. "Hm…interesting. Satoshi, since when did you ally with your enemy?"

"_This is only a temporary truce. I have no interest in being allied with a Raikeizian for long. Since I'm only a spirit now, there is nothing I can do._" Satoshi scoffed, glaring at Soma.

Soma directed his attention to the spirit-synced Misty and grinned when he noticed Kasumi's spirit. "Ah, Raikeizian guardian Kasumi, it's been a few thousand years since we've last met. How have you been?"

"_Tch, enough with the small talk Soma!_" Kasumi spat venomously, "_You know fully well we were enemies. Tell me, how is it you Viziers lived for so long? Even with your abilities, the maximum lifespan was around 200 years. Also, what happened after our souls were locked by that sorcerer?_"

Soma smirk turned wicked. "Wouldn't you like to know, little Kasumi-chan?"

Misty tossed Kasumi a curious glance. "-chan? What does that mean?"

"_It's ancient Luminarian talk. Often, we could have honorifics added to our names whenever someone addressed us. The –chan is used to address females who you have a close acquaintance with. However, Soma is using it as sarcasm._"

"Your memory of our old tongue hasn't changed one bit, neither has your attitude. But enough talk, how about we begin round two of our bout?" Soma loosened his fist and took on a battle stance. He stood on the balls of his feet and held his hands out in front of him. "I hope you guys are a little now stronger, because if not, you'll all surely die."

"We'll see about that!" Ash challenged.

"Feh_, that's big talk coming from someone who nearly died._" Satoshi huffed.

"Now's not the time Satoshi!"

"Hang on Ash." Misty said, stepping in front of Ash. Her eyes burned with fury as she tossed a murderous glare at Soma. "He nearly killed you not too long ago. I'm going to make him pay for that!"

"But Misty…" Ash began to reason.

"DON'T INTEREFERE!" Misty snapped, making Ash jump back in shock. Even Satoshi was surprised with her outburst.

"Oh, so now the little girl wants to take me on, huh? So be it!" Soma dashed at Misty swiftly. When he thrust his fist at Misty, he was surprised to see that she dodged it smoothly. "HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!" His fist flew at her at an incredible rate, but Misty was too fast for him to catch.

"_Interesting…just as I thought._" Satoshi pondered.

"What's up?" Ash asked the spirit.

"_It's Misty. Didn't you notice anything special about her last night when Team Rocket attacked us with that contraption?_"

"No, what was it you saw?"

"_That woman has some amazing agility. While she isn't very strong physically, her speed and reflexes is top notch, and because her spirit fused with Kasumi, it increased to far new heights. While you may be physically stronger than her, she could probably run circles around you without breaking a sweat. Of course, with Kasumi's added abilities…_" Satoshi grinned, excited, "_I'm infinitely intrigued to see what that girl can do against an opponent like Soma._"

"Hm…" Ash continued to observe Misty as she moved around Soma swiftly while dodging his blows. Speed isn't everything, and he, along with Satoshi, could only hope Misty would have something up her sleeve.

_SMASH!_

Soma's fist smashed into the earth, causing the ground to split under the force. Misty saw this as a small opening.

"HA!" Misty held onto Soma's embedded arm as support and performed a thrust punch

"Not so fast!" Soma yelled as he caught Misty's arm.

"Nice try!" Misty brought rammed her knee into Soma's forehead.

"Gah!" Soma pulled his submerged arm out of the ground and stepped back, rubbing his forehead. Even if it was slight, he felt that blow! "Heh, you're impressive, I'll give you that much. But…!" He aimed his fist at Misty, opening the hatches of the glove. "You still need a lot more training! Gun Flare!" He shot a flurry of red hot projectiles at Misty. While Misty dodged a majority of them, a few struck her. While she was stunned, he ran up to her and threw a few jabs at her, knocking her down.

"_Misty,_" Kasumi called, "You _only have one minute before our spirit-sync wears off! There's nothing more we can do at this point!_"

"No…" Misty stood up weakly, coughing up blood. Those punches from Soma took a lot out of her, and her wounds from the Gun Flare attack were starting to wear her down. "I will not give up, not until that man is defeated!" She charged wildly at Soma, aiming to punch him in the face.

"It's time to end this!" With a spin into a crouch, Soma uppercuted Misty hard in the stomach, making her gasp in pain. "Blazing…" With another punch in the same spot, he knocked her a few feet in the air and jumped with her. "BRINGER!"

_SLAM! CRASH!_

Misty was tossed onto the ground, creating a small crater in the earth. Her eyes slowly started to close, her spirit-sync wearing off and leaving Misty with little to no power left. "I'm so sorry Ash…I've…failed…you…" She soon fell unconscious, defeated by Soma.

"MISTY!" Ash was about to run to her aid when Soma stepped in front of him.

"Hey, our battle is not done yet! I'm still waiting for a good fight, and I'm going to get one, even if I have to beat you down to get it!" Soma cracked his knuckles and quirked his neck, preparing to beat Ash into oblivion.

"Well, at least I'm still synched with Satoshi! I have a chance to fight back!" Suddenly, Ash's hair and skin returned to normal, along with his special powers. "What…what happened?"

"_Gah…idiot…_" Satoshi panted. His voice sounded worn out. "_You should've cancelled the spirit-sync while watching Misty fight! Because of that, we ran out of time!_"

"Err…uh oh…" Ash swallowed hard as he stared up at the towering Fire Vizier. "Damn…I REALLY wish life had save points…"

_POW! BAM! THACK! SLAM!_

Ash was getting pummeled left and right by Soma, who wasn't even breaking a sweat. But then, Soma realized something strange. 'Wait a minute…' He thought, "Didn't he have Pokémon out earlier? That means…' He turned around just in time to see Snorlax swinging Onix towards him. "Heh, the same thing won't happen twice! RAAAH!"

_SMASH!_

The force of Soma's punch canceled out the force of the attack, but the damage done to Onix was enough to knock it out. Snorlax then released Onix and jumped high in the air and towards Soma, preparing to body slam him. "Gotcha! BURNING RAVE!" Soma was engulfed in massive flames and jumped towards Snorlax.

_WHAM!_

The force of the attack injured the Pokémon to the point where it was knocked out in one hit. The massive creature crashed onto the earth in defeat, rumbling the ground.

_SPLASH!_

A wave of Water Gun attacks struck Soma in the chest. However, this didn't even make the powerful Vizier flinch as he walked towards the three water Pokémon. When he was halfway there, he noticed something bright behind them, a charge of electric energy preparing to strike. It was Pikachu! But wait…if the three Pokémon were using Water Gun, and Pikachu was preparing an electric attack…uh oh… "Dammit, a trap!"

"Pi…ka….CHUU!" Pikachu unleashed a powerful Thunder attack on Soma, and with the combination of the Water Gun attacks, which were effective against the Vizier's element, the attack was actually affecting him now!

"ARGH!" Soma was starting to struggle as he pushed on against the heavy current of electrified water. "Grr….RRAAAAHH!" In an explosion of rage, his strength seemed to double as he charged through water current, which was beginning to wane due to fatigue. "BURNING RAVE!" Soma's powerful attack easily pierced the water/electric attack and struck Pikachu and the other Pokémon, knocking them out. When his attack ended, he glanced at the destruction he caused, and saw only one person standing.

It was Ash.

"My, you are quite resilient, but enough's enough. You are going well beyond your limit as a human. You cannot beat me."

"Well you're human too! And just like every other human, you must have a weakness somewhere! HIYA!" Ash ran at Soma and put all of his strength into one punch. But it was then Soma's thick sash stopped his attack and wrapped around his hand! "What…how can your sash move?"

"Hehehe…who ever said it was a sash?" Soma chuckled lowly. "Let me show you just why you can't win." He removed his shades and bandanna, flailing his thick, dark red hair around. When he opened his eyes, Ash gasped with a start, truly surprised. The thing that was wrapped around his arm wasn't a sash…

It was Soma's tail!

"This is why you humans can never defeat me…" He stared Ash down with his yellow eyes, which was shaped like a tiger's eye. His tiger-like ears twitched with the excitement of battle adrenaline. When he bared his teeth, Ash could see his tiger fangs, which were concealed earlier. "It's because I'm not human!"

_SMACK!_

"ARG!" Ash was sent flying and skidding across the ground. He was about to get up when Soma pounced on top of Ash, pinning him down.

"I'm going to show you how to properly fear a Vizier!"

"AAAAHH!" Ash screamed as Soma started beating him down.

Little did both know, the GS ball that was in Ash's pocket fell out during the struggle and rolled towards Brock, who was still unconscious. When the ball came into contact with Brock, the ball opened, releasing a green, bright sphere of light that shot into Brock's chest.

Brock's Unconscious Mind

"Huh…? What's going on?" Brock looked around a strange room, which was simply a green void. "Am I dead? Dreaming? In limbo? Just what's going on here?"

"Actually, I think limbo is the more precise term for where you are." A deep voice similar to Brock's spoke.

"Who's there?" Brock whipped around, only to step back and gasp in surprised. There stood an older, tougher, and taller version of himself with dark green hair. The look alike wore dark green clothing that consisted of a cloth that was wrapping around his knuckles and feet, a style similar to Soma's, and a thick, long haori with a light chest plate over it.

"Hello there!" The man waved.

"Who are you, and just where is this place?"

"This just happens to be your subconscious mind. I must say, gotta love the shading. And the name's Takeshi, pleasure to meet you Brock."

"How did you know my name?"

Takeshi held his chin thoughtfully. "I dunno, you just have this air about you. You got that "Brock" look to you. But that's beside the point; you seem to be in trouble."

"Ah, that's right! I—"

"…Need to save your friends, right?"

"Whoa…how did you figure that one out?"

"Well, your face just has that "I need to help my friends since I got pwned in the fight earlier" kind of look. It's actually a very common thing these days. However, your level of consciousness isn't enough to awaken yourself yet. Though, in this kind of situation, I can take over for you and help save your friends, but only if you will allow me. What do you say?" Takeshi offered Brock a friendly smile as he extended his hand.

"Hm…why not? I mean, who couldn't trust a guy with a face like that?" Brock grasped Takeshi's hand. Suddenly, a bright green light enveloped to two.

Center of the Viridian Forest

"RAAAH!"

_SMASH!_

Soma swung Ash around by the foot and slammed him hard on the ground. With that move, Ash lost consciousness. The tiger humanoid released Ash and huffed in disappointment. "Tch, what a shame. Just when I thought these kids would give me an actual challenge, they proved to be weak, just like most humans these days. Perhaps I should just finish off these kids…"

"Or, you could give them a chance to get stronger."

"Hm?" Soma turned around grinned with surprise. "Takeshi! It's been too long!" He took off his metal gauntlets and approached Takeshi. The two exchange greetings with each other. "Man, I surely didn't expect to see you! How's it been?"

"Boring. I've been asleep the entire time." Takeshi answered flatly.

"Now, what was it you were saying earlier about giving them a chance?"

"I've had a small chat with the owner of this body. The boy you just totaled is Ash Ketchum, a boy who holds great promise. I don't know much about the girl, but from the short bit I've heard about the boy, I think he could be a very capable opponent for you. He just needs awhile. So, why don't you let us go for now and come back when he's stronger? I'm sure you've caught a glimpse of what these kids can do."

"Hm…you have a good point. But tell me, how can you be so sure that these kids got the potential it takes to take me on?"

"…Are they still alive?"

Soma glanced back at Ash and Misty, who were both battered and bloody, but still breathing. "…Yeah, but barely."

"Then they definitely have potential."

"...Too true. Alright, I'll let them live for now. But first, I gotta collect my earnings." Soma walked towards Ash and took away all of his shards and money. Lastly, he took the cap off Ash's head and placed it on top of his own. "Heh, how do ya like it?"

"Looks spiffy." Takeshi answered, giving him the thumbs up.

"Hm…I don't know what it is, but it's something about this hat that makes me want to do something…" Soma glanced down and saw a rock. He picked it up and imitated Ash's victory cheer. "Alright, I caught a Pokémon!"

There was a moment of silence.

"…"

"…"

"…Soma?"

"…Yeah?"

"…What the hell was that?"

"…Not a clue. I know I should feel stupid, but it must be the hat. I feel cool yet dumb at the same time. GAH!" Soma hurriedly took off the hat. "This thing must be cursed!"

"Well, keep hold of the stuff for now. I'm sure the boy will feel more motivated with it missing."

"Meh, I guess I'll hold onto it for now. I just hope it doesn't make me stupid or something. I swear, the boy's lack of style scares me."

"Me too." The two nodded in agreement. Takeshi glanced upward at the sky, which was beginning to turn into nightfall. "You should probably get going. I'll watch over these kids and make sure they stay alive. I'll catch you later."

"Alright, see ya Takeshi!" Soma bided farewell as he picked up his huge sword, boombox and backpack and left the decimated area. Takeshi sighed with relief. There was no way he could fight Soma by himself with the current level of strength. In the past, he and Soma were equal in strength and ability. They weren't rivals nor allies, but people who respected each other's strength.

"Whew! It's been awhile since I've walked around. Now let's see, I just gotta get these guys away from this area to a safer environment, and then set up camp. That shouldn't be too hard. Well, time to get to work!"

Hours later, a camp was set up in another area and everyone was sound asleep. The Pokémon were back in their respective Pokéballs and Ash and Misty were in their own tents, giving them time and space to recover.

However, inside Ash's tent, a woman in a black stealth suit and mask slipped in, crawling on her hands and knees. She didn't stop until she was directly over Ash. Taking off her mask and goggles, she revealed herself to be May from Team Shadow! She was surprised with the amount of bandages that was over his body. Whatever happened to him must have been brutal. Nonetheless, she had come to do a mission, and she was going to do just that.

But…she felt herself melt a little when she saw his face, which thankfully wasn't too scathed. In a trance-like state, she leaned forward to his face, closing her eyes. Her lips were mere inches above his when she shot her head back up, shaking it furiously. 'No, no, no! I have to keep focus and do this! It's for the sake of the mission!'

Hesitantly, she unsheathed her combat knife and held it high above Ash's head. She grasped the knife's handle with both hands, feebly trying to stop the trembling. Though she clenched her eyes tightly, she couldn't prevent the tears that escaped.

'I'm sorry Ash, but…goodbye!' She thrust the knife downwards, targeting Ash's head…

* * *

Oooh, a cliffe! Well, sorry for this long awaited chapter. I've been busy and stuff, so I didn't get a chance. I hope you found this battle chapter exciting. I promise there will be more good ones coming in the future! So stay tuned and please review, seeing that I've had a bit of a lack from the last chapter. 

Song for Ash and co. Vs. Soma – Those who fight further – Final Fantasy VII, Advent children

P.S. I made a small oops recently. I thought Zap Cannon was Pikachu's strongest attack, but now I know Thunder is his strongest attack.


	9. Showdown in Pewter City! Part 1

**_Chapter 9 – Showdown in Pewter City! Part 1_**

Viridian Forest

'_I'm sorry Ash, but…goodbye!' She thrust the knife downwards, targeting Ash's head…_

'I…can't do this!' May's knife stopped just above Ash's head. No matter what the reason, she just couldn't take his life. The boy meant too much to her. Though her mission had gotten a lot harder, maybe she could somehow try to reason with him at a later date, seeing that she was with the good guys. Slipping her knife back in the pocket, she escaped and headed towards her nearby camp.

In the distance, Brendan took his finger of the trigger and placed the sniper rifle on his back. 'Hm…interesting. Torn by affection and duty. It looks like even those from Team Shadow have their own set of weaknesses.'

"Hey, did you see someone?" Gary asked, setting up camp.

"…No, just Ash. If we keep our distance for now, we should be able to keep a constant check on Ash."

Wes knelt next to Brendan placed his hand on his shoulder. "Brother, it's my shift right now, so lemme get the sniper."

Brendan's eyebrow twitched irritably, but he decided not to give in to his desire to strangle the silver haired gunner. He gave Wes the sniper and got up to leave. "Just remember, don't go shooting everything that moves. You remember the last time you had watch with a sniper rifle."

"Hey, that guy shouldn't have walked past my crosshairs. Besides, the doctors did say he would survive…"

"That's beside the point! Ugh, never mind, I'm going to bed." With a groan, Brendan left for the tent he was sharing with Wes.

"Goodnight brother!" Wes chuckled under his breath as he heard Brendan growl from inside the tent.

Many hours later, Ash stirred awake inside his tent. The first thing he noticed was Pikachu sleeping next to him. The electric mouse was bandaged up, but the wounds didn't seem serious. That was a relief. Ash opted to get up, only to feel sharp pain course throughout his body, which brought back memories of his fight against Soma. That man, tiger, whatever it was, the power he held was incredible. He completely demolished everyone, even the Pokémon, and by himself! Just what kind of monsters are the Viziers? Soma seemed to know Leon, and even mentioned that Leon was a Vizier. If so, how was he was able to defeat Leon back in Viridian City? Was it luck, or was Leon even trying? Ash didn't know, but one thing was certain: These opponents held strength like no one he ever seen!

Speaking of strength, Misty was equally surprising. Since when did she learn to fight? Her speed was incredible. But, it was as though Ash saw another side of Misty. Her eyes blazed with fury and she was dead set on defeating the Fire Vizier. What was it that made Misty so angry at that moment? It didn't seem like he would find out anytime soon, but perhaps if his sore body could move more than an inch, he could try.

"_I see you are awake."_ Satoshi said, his physical image appearing next to Ash, sitting cross-legged.

"Oh, Satoshi, how are you feeling?" Ash asked.

"_Awful. I'm still fatigued from the battle."_

"How can you be tired? All we did was spirit-sync. Besides, I was the one fighting."

"_That's half true. When we perform the sync, we are literally synchronized, meaning what you feel, I feel. If you get hurt, I get hurt. If I am not mistaken, you should be feeling a little dizzy as well as exhausted."_

"Hm…come to think of it, I do feel a little lightheaded. Wait, so the spirit-sync drains our minds?"

"_In a sense, yes. It drains what is called mana, which is basically our mental stamina. The mind is the essence of the soul, so in order to increase your mental stamina, you must increase your soul strength, which will happen within time. However, since you are not yet accustomed to the spirit-sync, it is no surprise that you would feel drained. Just remember that time is mana. The more mana you gain, the longer we can stay synced."_

"Mana huh? I'll try to remember that." Ash tried to move again, but felt his body scream in agony, which he almost did himself. "Ah! Man, my body feels like its on fire."

"_I'm guessing that's because you got beaten by Soma last night._" A voice said from outside the tent.

"_That voice…oh no…please, oh please tell me it is not who I think it is!"_ Satoshi pleaded to the heavens. His hopes fell when Brock entered the tent, the spirit of Takeshi walking next to Brock.

"Sleep well? I hope you find your bandages accommodating." Brock gestured the white bindings over Ash's body, mainly the torso and shoulders.

"Whoa…Brock? Since when did you have a spirit?" Ash asked in surprise, noticing Takeshi.

"During the fight against Soma, Takeshi entered my body and helped get you guys to safety. You should thank him, since he's the one who fixed you up."

"Oh…well…thank you very much Takeshi." Ash thanked.

"_Hey, it's no problem. I'm always glad to help a fellow friend!"_ Takeshi grinned, flashing Ash a reassuring thumbs up.

"_It doesn't look like you've changed one bit."_ Satoshi scoffed.

"_Ah, Satoshi-kun! It's been awhile! I hope you are doing well!"_

"_First off, I'm not your friend, so don't –kun me! Secondly, I'm doing terrible."_ The darkness guardian crossed his arms grumpily. _"Hmph, you and Kasumi are still annoying as ever."_

_Takeshi shook his head shamefully. "Geez, you're still bitter as ever. Come on, that was like what, 5000 years ago? Give it a rest man!"_

"Give what a rest? Did something happen to Satoshi?" Ash inquired, curious about his spirit.

"_Oh nothing, just the fact that—"_

"_Complete that sentence and I'll be sure to erase any remote chance you have at creating a bloodline!"_ Satoshi threatened.

"_Err…point taken."_

Kasumi…that reminded Ash about Misty. "How is Misty? Is she feeling better?" He asked worriedly.

"She's fine." Brock answered, "You suffered a lot more injures than her, so she should be up and moving around soon."

"That's good."

"Actually, I'll check up on her right now. I'll be back." Brock left through the flap and towards Misty's tent.

With Misty, she was wide awake, staring up at the top of the tent. She felt weak and feeble. Soma didn't just defeat her, he crushed her. Her strength was nowhere near in comparison to his, even with Kasumi's help. She attempted to do what Ash would do, which was to fight for a worthy cause and give it your all, but even then it was useless. Why couldn't she be stronger? Was she really so weak she couldn't protect the one person she cared about most?

"_Misty…you are thinking too hard about this. Please, do not stress your mind further than it already has."_ Kasumi pleaded soothingly.

"But…I couldn't protect Ash! It's always him that's saving everyone else. Trying to put the world on his shoulders and protecting people. All I want to do is share the weight of his responsibilities and be able to protect him, but now, it doesn't even look like I can even do that. Tch, I'm just too weak…"

"_It is not that you are weak, but your enemy is thousands of years old, not to mention on a completely different level of strength. Don't take your loses as defeat, but a chance to strike back. You can sit here and cry all you like about being defeated, but unless you make yourself stronger, you'll only open the gate for more people to walk over you, and those who you wish to beat will continue to beat you. It is an endless chain of misery which can only be broken by you, no one else. Keep strong and keep getting stronger, because your foes are going to do the same."_

Misty stared at Kasumi in awe, speechless for a moment. "…Wow…you really are amazing. You're so strong and wise Kasumi. I envy your strength."

"_Who doesn't?"_ Takeshi said as he and Brock stepped inside.

"_Takeshi-kun!"_ Kasumi gasped.

"Takeshi…-kun?" Misty's eyes widened with surprise when she realized it. "Brock! You have a spirit now!"

"Yep! Now I won't have to be worried about feeling left out in your weird conversations! Yes!" Brock shot his fist in the air victoriously. "Anyway, do you feel you can move right now? Ash's awake if you want to see him."

"Oh, yeah. I can move a little. Let's go." Misty winced slightly as she stood up, her body and mind still feeling weak from yesterday's battle. She ignored it as she followed Brock into Ash's tent. There, Misty and Brock sat next to Ash.

"Hey Misty, feeling better?" Ash asked.

"Yeah. Um…Ash? I'm sorry about the way I acted earlier, during that fight." Misty's head lowered apologetically.

"It's alright, at least everyone's okay."

"And that's what matters, so let's not dwell on the past." Brock cheered, lightening the mood.

"I agree…hm?" Ash looked around and noticed something missing. "Hey, where's my hat?"

Takeshi rubbed his head bashfully. _"Your hat? Um…about that. You see, when you lost the fight, Soma kinda…took it…of course I'm sure that's nothing to worry about. I mean, it's just a hat."_

Ash's eyebrow twitched angrily at the comment. "Just…a…hat? Just a HAT? THAT was NOT just a HAT! That was an official Pokémon league baseball cap, and it was one of a kind! And you let Soma take it?" Ash immediately stood on his feet, clenching his fist tightly. His eyes blazed with extreme fury. "That does it! I will not rest, eat, or sleep until I get my hat back! …And I guess I'll get the shards back too while I'm at it."

Takeshi glanced worriedly at Brock. _"Is he always like this?"_ He whispered.

"If only you knew…"

"Alright guys! It's time to go! We got no time to lose!" Ash took a step forward …

_FLOP!_

…only to fall flat on his face. "Ow …"

Satoshi groaned with irritation. "You moron! Don't go making such a big scene if you can't even stand on your feet!"

Ash weakly raised his hand to gain everyone's attention. "Uh…new plan. First, we get our strength back, THEN we get back my cap!"

Misty and Brock both face-faulted. Typical…

After several hours of resting and the use of Misty's new healing technique, Ash, Misty and Brock regained enough strength to continue their trek through the Viridian forest. Luckily, thanks to Takeshi's keen sense of nature, they made it through the forest and to Pewter City, which had long recovered since the attack from Team Rocket a few days ago. Because of everyone's injured Pokémon, the first stop was at the Pokémon center, which Brock was more than happy to visit. However, to everyone's surprise, so was Takeshi.

"_Great, merciful gods! It's White Mage Joy!"_ Takeshi gasped with delight.

Ash and Misty glanced at Takeshi in confusion. "White Mage…Joy?"

Kasumi snapped her fingers when she recognized the nurse._ "Ah, I knew I recognized her from somewhere! In our era, they were the white mages who would heal anyone in need, and for free! It's shocking how they still look the same after all these years…"_

"Why am I not surprised…?" Ash sighed.

"_Yo, Takeshi, what's with the grin on your face?"_ Satoshi asked, gesturing the sinister smirk on his face.

"_I've just realized the perfect reason why being a spirit is great. First off, Ash, come over here and stand next to us. Brock, go talk to the woman."_

"_Hehehe, no problem with that!"_ Brock reassured telepathically. He was immediately at Nurse Joy's side, chatting with her about various topics, including dating spots and favorite foods. Ash stood next to him silently, pondering about Takeshi's motives.

"_Okay, now Satoshi, follow my lead."_

Satoshi raised an eyebrow in confusion_. "Uh…sure…"_ Both he and Takeshi got on all fours and crawled under the unsuspecting nurse. There, they both looked up for a little "sneak peek" at Nurse Joy's underwear…

_WHAM!_

"OW!" Ash and Brock seethed, getting smashed over the head by Misty's mallet.

"Why did ya hit me for? I didn't do anything!" Ash whined, rubbing the lump on his head.

"You went along with his plan!" Misty bellowed.

Nurse Joy sweat-dropped at Misty's aggressive nature. She didn't know what was going on, but she hoped she wasn't involved. "Um…can I help you three?"

"Yes. Could you heal our Pokémon for the night?" Misty requested, holding Ash and Brock in a headlock.

"Of course." Nurse Joy took the group's Pokéballs and placed them in three separate trays. Pikachu was laid on a separate tray away from the rest. "They should be fine by tomorrow so comeback around then."

"Ack! Leggo already Misty!" Ash coughed, gasping for air. He rubbed his sore neck as soon as he escaped the vice grip. "Alright, let's head to Brock's house while our Pokémon rest here."

"Sounds good. Follow me." Brock, also escaping Misty's headlock, guided the group to his gym.

Pewter City Gym – Brock's Room

Ash, Misty and Brock all settled comfortably on Brock's king sized bed, getting relaxed. It was mid evening, and seeing they were going to spend the night, there was nothing more to do than to get to know their spirits.

"Hey Takeshi, how is it that you guys seem to know each other so well? In a way, it seems as though you all used to be friends." Ash inquired.

"_Good question my fellow comrade. You see, back in Lumina, guardians were very special and heralded throughout the lands as the future champions of their nation. Of course, being a champion doesn't come without much battle skill and survival experience, this is where the "Great Pilgrimage" comes into play. This is a five year long event where a guardian is cast out of their kingdom and forced to travel the lands, gaining experience and such. All five guardians were sent out on the pilgrimage at the age of ten, which was actually a pretty ripe age to travel."_

"Wait, so you're saying all five civilizations started this pilgrimage at the same time?" Brock questioned.

"_Yes. I found that strange too, but I suppose fate has a strange way of working out. Funny enough, it only gets stranger, because one by one, we all joined and grew up together. Heh, I'll never forget the first time I met Satoshi…"_

"_Hahaha! I remember that! Good times…"_ Satoshi laughed, reminiscing.

Satoshi's Flashback– Lumina 5000 years ago

"Get back here thief!" A middle aged man screamed, chasing down a 10 year old Satoshi, who was dressed in a raggedy brown cloak.

"Think of it as exercise ya old geezer! Ha-ha!" Satoshi taunted, flashing the man an inappropriate gesture. This only proved to anger the man further. As Satoshi made a turn in an alleyway, he bumped into someone else who was running as well. Both of them staggered slightly before recovering. "Ow…hey, watch where ya going moron!"

"The same goes for you!" A green haired boy shot, dressed in a similar fashion, but wearing green instead.

"Hey, that's the pervert who flicked my skirt! Get him!" A woman yelled, followed by many other girls.

"There you are!" The old man who was chasing Satoshi exclaimed.

"Crap, busted!" Satoshi and the other boy cursed aloud. The alleyway was a three-way point, which meant they only had one both to choose. Without a second thought, they dashed in that direction.

"So…" Satoshi started, snatching an apple from a nearby fruit stand. "What's ya name?"

"It's Takeshi." He answered, flicking the skirt of a nearby attractive woman. "And yours?"

"I'm Satoshi." The two continued to run as the number of pursuers steadily increased.

Not far from the location, a young silver haired girl was riding her brand new bike, which she finally saved up enough money to get. She was pedaling and humming to herself happily. Not only was the bike super high quality, but the latest in design, using the super advanced technology of the water kingdom, and combined with the great engineers from the fire kingdom. It was also extremely expensive and took over 3 months of hard labor to get. At least traveling between countries would be a lot easier now.

"Stop! Thief!" "Get back here you pervert!" Several voices and threats could be heard from behind the bike riding girl.

"Hm?" The girl turned around, only to stare in surprise. Two boys were running from what could only be defined as an angry lynch mob. Unwittingly, she slowed down a little to get a grasp on what was going on…

"Hey, look ahead!" Takeshi pointed to the silver haired girl.

Satoshi grinned sneakily. "I got a plan. Follow my lead." He ran as fast as he could until he was right next to the girl.

The girl glanced at the two runners curiously. "Hey, do you two need help—"

_WHAM!_

"WAH!" The girl was kicked off the bike by Satoshi, which was hijacked by both Satoshi and Takeshi soon after. Unfortunately, she just happened to be riding on a bridge at the time, which was built over a raging river…

_SPLASH!_

"Thanks for the bike, loser!" Satoshi laughed, pedaling on the bike.

Takeshi glanced at the girl, who was muttering a series of strong obscenities as she was being dragged by the current. "That was kinda harsh Satoshi. She was kind of cute…"

"Hey, think of it as a token of her appreciation; now let's get out of here!" Satoshi pushed the bike to its limits as he and Takeshi escaped the clutches of the angry mob.

End of Flashback

"…_And that's how I met Satoshi. Ever since then, we've been getting in trouble left and right."_ Takeshi finished.

"Wow Satoshi, you were quite the bad boy back then, huh?" Ash mused.

"_Well hey, I had to find some way to survive, and there was no better way than to steal stuff from other people."_ Satoshi reasoned, shrugging.

"_Ah, but that isn't the best part. Just wait until you hear what happened a week after that day…"_ Takeshi started.

"_Oh no, you don't mean…"_ Satoshi gasped, horrified by the memory.

"_You got it! To continue, we had just gotten into a forest and stayed there to rest a little bit…_"

Satoshi's Flashback – Lumina 5000 years ago – Forest area

"Whew! Finally, a break!" Satoshi sighed, sitting on a tree stump.

"You said it! We went through a lot this past week, and because that bike broke down on us, we had to travel on foot. It stinks, but at least we're safe for the moment." Takeshi jumped on top of a tree trunk, looking down on Satoshi. "So, what country are you from?"

"Kuroza…the outskirts."

"Whoa, one of the so called forsaken ones, huh? Not many people like them these days." Takeshi whistled. "I'm from Terroga, where everyone's friendly."

"Sounds boring."

"No, it's actually pretty fun. Plus, the girls are all so awesome! White Mage Joy and Sentry Jenny are the best girls ever!" Takeshi placed his hand to his heart dramatically, staring up at the sky.

Satoshi rolled his eyes. "Don't you think of anything besides girls?"

"Uh…pretty girls?"

"Ugh…never mind…" Satoshi ran his hand through his red and black hair habitually. There was just no getting through the Terrogian.

"Hm? What's that?" Takeshi cupped his ears, listening with his higher-than-normal senses. "Sounds like someone is coming. I don't hear clinking, so it can't be an enemy soldier."

"Well, if it's not an enemy soldier, then it must be our cash cow coming by. Let's get ready to greet our new friend." Satoshi unsheathed his lightweight broadsword and stood up. Takeshi, who preferred hand-to-hand combat, jumped down from the tree and stood next to Satoshi.

_CRASH!_

Both Satoshi and Takeshi jumped at the sound of a tree being knocked down. Whoever was coming their way was very powerful. Satoshi narrowed his eyes as he saw something zooming towards them. "Takeshi, get down!" Satoshi hurriedly ducked.

"Huh? What for?"

_SMACK!_

"That!" Satoshi pointed out, referring to the large, mangled piece of steel that beamed Takeshi on the head. Upon further inspection, the metal turned out to be…a ruined bike?

"YOU!" An angry girl shouted, storming into view. She was wearing all white clothes, including a cloak, shorts, traveling shoes, and a simple, light breastplate. However, her clothes were worn, torn, dirty and wet, though if the fire in her eyes were real flames, she could dry herself and burn the entire forest into ashes.

"Sweet! A pretty girl!" Takeshi swooned, immediately reviving from the previous projectile attack. He smoothly approached the girl and held her hands into his. "Why hello sweet thing! My name is—"

_WHAM!_

Satoshi winced as he saw his friend received a powerful drop kick to the head, sending him flying. When the girl's eyes locked onto his, he immediately realized one thing.

She was furious.

"You…" The silver haired woman gripped Satoshi by the shirt and brought him to her face. "You're the one from before! Do you realize what hell I've been through because of you?"

"Err…no, but I guess you're going to tell me anyway."

"First, after you knocked me in the river, I was chased by sharks, serpents, and heaven knows what else for what felt like miles. Then, the moment I made it to land, I was attacked by fire people of Fazura who thought I was from the water kingdom Mizura! The minute I escaped, I was chased for days by crooks, bandits, and monsters! Finally, after getting through all of that, I find the bike, MY bike that YOU stole, totally destroyed! Do you have ANY idea how much that bike cost?"

"Well…while I do feel your pain, I feel I should get a refund on that bike…"

"Refund? You stole it!"

"That's not the point. That the bike was poorly made…"

"It was made of the finest steel material!"

"Well hey, if it can't survive the attack of a 30 foot dragon, then it isn't such a great bike, now is it? Besides, I don't see your name on it, how can you just claim that the bike was yours in the first place?"

The girl lifted the bike with her free hand and shoved it in Satoshi's face. "It's right here!"

Satoshi leaned in and narrowed his eyes, attempting to decipher the horribly disfigured text. "…Ka…su…mi…Kasumi! Not the best name in my book, but I suppose it holds promise."

"Speaking of promises, I'll make you pay for the bike, even if I have to follow you until the ends of the earth for all eternity!"

Satoshi narrowed his eyes. "…Are you coming on to me?"

Kasumi gritted her teeth. "You know what? I've just about had it with your smart comments!" She reeled her fist back, preparing to punch Satoshi.

"Look over there! A free bike voucher!" Satoshi exclaimed, pointing behind the silver haired menace.

"Really?" Kasumi turned around, but saw nothing but trees and bushes. When she turned back, she found herself no longer holding Satoshi's shirt, but a letter with three simple letters…

I.O.U.

"DAMMIT!" Kasumi cursed, crumbling the paper in her trembling fist. "GET BACK HERE!" She yelled, charging in the direction Satoshi and Takeshi escaped.

End of Flashback

"…_And that's how we met Kasumi. Not the most pleasant gathering, but it was fun nonetheless."_ Takeshi finished.

"_You know, of everyone I've met, I've never seen anyone handle a conniption so well. I'm impressed!" _Satoshi mused.

"_And don't think I've forgotten! One way or another, you'll pay for that!"_ Kasumi declared.

Satoshi tossed her an annoyed glance_. "I'm a floating freakin' ghost! How in the hell will I be able to do anything? Spook people into giving your precious bike back?"_

"_You can make snide comments all you like, but one day, you'll be at my mercy! That's when I'll force you to pay me back!"_

Misty tossed Ash a knowing glare. "Gee, why does this story sound SO familiar?"

Ash crossed his arms, furrowing his eyebrows in thought. "I know I've heard of that story from somewhere, but I can't put my finger on it…"

Misty clenched her fist in frustration. "How about I put my mallet upside your—"

_CRASH! BOOM!_

"What was that?" Brock exclaimed, standing up.

"I dunno, let's check it out!" Ash suggested. The others nodded and followed him outside. There, they were surprised with two abnormal sights. The first one being destruction on a large scale that befell Pewter City. Many buildings and houses had holes and cracks in the walls while the ground and a few boulders were split apart. However, the second sight was what surprised Ash and the gang the most.

There were two 10 year old children, both yelling and fighting with each other. The tanned boy had long silver hair and blue eyes, which complimented his short, puffy silver tail and adorable dog ears. He was wearing a light grey haori which was a little big for his size and had human-like dog paws for feet and hands. The tanned girl who was arguing with the dog boy had chocolate brown eyes and very long brown hair that stretched to her knees. She wore a black, skin tight, sleeveless sparring uniform which ended at her thighs. Her hands and feet were cat-like paws and there were four black stripes on her face, two coming from the corner of her cheeks and two from the top corner, going over her eyes. Each stripe ended close to her nose. Even in a heated argument, the two half humans were the embodiment of cuteness.

"Why don't you stand still and let me hit you, mutt?" The cat girl hissed, crouching on all fours, her long brown tail flailed left and right excitedly.

"Why, so I can catch your stupid? No thanks!" The dog boy retorted, growling at the girl.

"Hey, what's going on here?" Brock demanded, entering the scene with Ash and Misty. At the same time, two other people entered as well.

"Zero and Kirara, just what are you two fighting over this time?" A tanned woman interrogated. She had black stripes and blue colored cat ears, similar to the younger cat girl. Her hair and eyes were a dark shade of blue, just like the clothes she wore, which consisted of silky, sleeveless shirt with no middle, a long dress with two slits on the side, knee high boots, and a billowing cape. In other words….

"WOW! So…HOT!" Brock gasped, staring at the blue haired woman. Without missing a beat, he zipped in front of her, kneeling and grasping her gloved hand. "Hello my sexy feline! My name is Brock and I would like to personally welcome you to Pewter City. If you're not busy later, how about I give you a tour?"

The woman placed her index finger on Brock's nose. Suddenly, Brock was turned into a block of ice! "Sorry, not interested in weaklings." With a kick, she shattered the ice and sent Brock flying to his friends.

"Ouch…that was cold…" Brock groaned.

When Ash saw the forth newcomer, he gasped in surprise! "It's you!"

"It's been awhile Ash." Leon greeted smoothly. "It looks like what Soma said was true. Takeshi has returned."

"Awesome! It's just like you said brother, those kids are carrying the guardians with them!" Zero exclaimed.

"Takeshi, do you know who they are?" Ash asked.

Takeshi nodded_. "I sure do. Leon is from the same nation that I am. He was a rank under me back then. The blue haired girl is Katana, the Ice Vizier from Mizura. The little cat girl is Kirara, Katana's sister and Fighting Vizier from Fazura. Of course, Kasumi should especially recognize Leon's little brother, Zero. He's the Flying Vizier from Raikeiza, which is Kasumi's nation."_

"Glad to see your memory hasn't diminished from your 5000 year sleep." Leon said. He turned to his little brother and glared. "Now Zero, you know better than to fight in public, especially with Kirara. You know fully well how destructive your bouts can be." His eyes glanced over Ash's group, his lips curving into a grin. "I think I know of a good way to settle your differences with Kirara."

"Oh? How so big brother?" Zero asked.

"A little contest between the two of you. Which ever one of you defeats Ash and his friends will enslave the person he or she hates most for an entire week. How does that sound?"

"That's a great idea!" Kirara praised. "You hear that Zero? You are about to be my pet for the next week! I hope you are ready to do laundry and be a punching bag!"

Zero turned to face Ash's group, but glanced at Kirara from the side. "If anything, you are about to lose this little bet! You're on!" The two children prepared to charge at Ash, Misty and Brock.

Katana tugged on Leon's cape, motioning him to whisper. "Hey, do you see what I see?" She pointed towards the trees. At two different spots, there was a group of people spying on the scene. Leon caught on and smirked when he recognized one of the groups.

"Yeah. I got the one on the right. I have a score to settle with the guy there. You get the other group, but be careful. They are actually pretty tough for non-advanced humans. Don't hold back against them too much. I'm off." Leon leapt away from the group and headed for one of the two groups hidden in the outskirts of Pewter City.

"Play nice with your new friends!" Katana said.

"We will!" Both Zero and Kirara answered, not taking their eyes off Ash. Katana dashed off towards the other group that was hiding.

"_Get ready! These two may be kids, but they are no pushovers! Zero's speed and intelligence excels beyond belief, and Kirara's sheer brute strength is deadly! She can easily send a grown man flying!"_ Takeshi warned.

"Are you serious? You're telling me that this little girl has that much power? Get real!" Brock walked over to Kirara and patted her on the head. "Come on, you call this cute little girl strong? She's pretty much skin and—"

_POW!_

"ARGH!" Brock was sent flying many meters into the air, thanks to Kirara's uppercut. Ash and Misty sweat-dropped as they watched Brock soar across the air and land behind the Pewter City gym with a loud thud.

"…_I guess Takeshi wasn't kidding about the power thing…ouch…"_ Satoshi winced.

"…Is he going to be alright?" Misty pondered.

Ash slowly faced the batter-eager Zero and Kirara. "Um…could we check to see if our friend is alright?"

"Sure." The two Viziers shrugged. Ash and Misty chased after the fallen Brock, hoping he was still alive.

Outskirts of Pewter City – Team Nova

"You again!" Gary exclaimed, jumping back defensively.

"I've been waiting for you ever since our last battle." Leon stood on top of a tree trunk, crossing his arms coolly.

"Brendan, scan him!" Gary called.

"Alright." Brendan pulled out a small earpiece with a square, clear screen and clipped it to his ear. Pressing a button on it, different statistics appeared on the screen, analyzing Leon.

**_Name_**: Leon Kisaragi

**_Class_**: Grass Vizier

**_Stats_**:

_Physical stamina_ – B

_Mental stamina_ – B

_Offensive ability_ – A

_Defensive ability_ – A

_Speed_ – A

_Intelligence_ – B

"Whoa…this guy really is dangerous. I made sure to do research on these "Viziers" before we left the base. According to the legend, these guys were pretty fierce. I don't know if they really are the same ones as before, but its best we don't underestimate them."

"Right. Let's do it guys! Prepare for battle!" Gary commanded, taking off the safety of his two handguns.

Leon watched as the five elites of Team Nova suited up and equipped themselves. Rui had five pieces of silver armor equipped. Two were special arm guards carrying a small payload of explosives and twin barreled lasers. Two other armaments were placed on her legs, giving her boosters for extra speed. The last piece of equipment was on her head, a helmet with a blue glass visor. Wes took out his blitz blade from the sheath on his hip while standing next to Brendan, who had his saber in his sheath. Gary stood in front of the group, ready to fight as well.

"Quite the assortment of weapons you all have. However, this seems a bit unfair. How about I even up the odds?" Leon held one of his hands out and closed his eyes, focusing a lot of energy into the palm of his hand. A green swirl of energy flowed through his arm, forcing the Grass Vizier to grip his wrist with his other hand in order to stop the trembling. After a moment of conjuring, a card materialized in his hand. "You will have to excuse me for my sloppiness. I'm still not use to doing this. You see, while you may have Pokémon, those of us from ancient times acknowledge creatures that can easily turn your little pets into dust! Now, I summon Bronze-Arm Tribe!" Leon flashed the card towards Team Nova, which started to flash brilliantly. The card transformed into four balls of light, which turned into four green reptilian creatures carrying a small stick weapon and wooden shield.

Gary stepped back in shock. "What kind of monster is that?"

"I've never heard of anything like this before!" Brendan exclaimed in surprise.

Leon's lips curled into a satisfied smirk. "I see you like my allies. For starters, these are not Pokémon, but creatures known as Kaijudo, monsters from another realm. Pokémon got nothing on these guys."

The four Bronze-Arm Tribes turned to face Leon and knelt in respect. "How may we serve you Master Leon?"

Team Nova was even more stupefied than before. "They…can talk?" Gary's eyes widened with shock.

"Of course they can. It's like I said, Pokémon can't even compete with the Kaijudo. Now, my Bronze-Arms, I command you to destroy my foes, but leave the reddish-brown haired one to me. Understood?"

"Yes master!" The creatures complied with the order and charged at the separate members of Team Nova, except for Gary.

"It's time for payback!" Leon shouted, charging after Gary.

Outskirts of Pewter City – Team Shadow

"Allow me to show you all a special treat. I've never had to do it for humans before, but I'll make an exception for you three…" Katana extended her hands and concentrated on them. An icy blue wave emanated from her hands and formed a crystal ice katana and shield!

"What on earth was that?" May gasped, arming herself. The members of Team Shadow took out their guns and prepared for the fight of their lives.

"This is the true power of a Vizier!" Katana jumped high in the air and dove towards the three Team Shadow agents. "This…is MAGIC!"

* * *

And that's chapter 9! I'll bet no one saw that one coming! Yes, Duel Masters will kinda crossover with this fic, however, only the monsters and spells from the actual card game will make an appearance, not the characters from the anime. Only one person managed to catch the reference, and I'm quite pleased with that. Anyway, prepare for some major action in the next chapter, and please review if you like this chapter/story. I look forward to your comments! 

Oh, and the "Luminarian language" is indeed Japanese. However, unlike another story (Bushido League), I will try to only use some honorifics and possibly one or two words. I won't overdo it.

Claimer: All original characters and storyline are mine.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or Duel Masters. All creatures/spells from Duel Masters card game belong to the original owners


	10. Showdown in Pewter City! Part 2

**_Chapter 10 – Showdown in Pewter City! part 2_**

Pewter City

**(Crisis Game – Isao Kasai – Full Metal Alchemist game, Wingless angel)**

"Prepare to lose Ketchum! You're mine!" Zero declared. He dug into his large open sleeves and pulled out two pistols.

"Forget the taunting, just attack!" Kirara ran at Ash on all fours while Zero dashed towards the side. Ash jumped back as the cat girl swung her claw down at him, but just as he did that, Zero appeared behind him, aiming his two guns at him.

"Checkmate!" Zero declared, about to pull the trigger.

"Not if I can help it!" Brock shouted, swinging his fist at the dog boy.

"Too slow!" Zero back flipped onto Brock's arm and aimed at his head!

_BLAM!_

"Whoa!" Brock used the metal guard on the back of his fingerless gloves to deflect the shot. "Hey, get off!" He thrashed his arms wildly to shake the Flying Vizier off, but the boy was too agile for the breeder.

"Don't worry Brock, I'll get him off you!" Misty was about to approached Brock when Kirara dove at her from the air.

_SLASH!_

"AH!" Misty narrowly dodged the claw strike. When Kirara's claws struck the stone boulder, the rock was split in half! If Misty wasn't careful, she would get pulverized!

_Swipe! Slash! Swipe! Slash!_

"Stand! Still! Already!" Kirara yelled, slashing rapidly.

"Ngh…!" Misty received a small nick on her cheek when Kirara attempted to pounce on her. "HA!" She spun around into a back spin kick; only to have it blocked by Kirara's arm.

"Cat-scratch Agony!" Kirara lunged speedily past Misty several times, leaving light and painful slashes on her with each hit. Misty attempted to block many of the hits, but still received a lot of damage form the swift barrage of slash attacks. Without warning, the cuts from Kirara's attack started to burn like crazy. "Heh, your body should feel like it's burning right now. That's the power of my Cat-Scratch Agony attack. Whenever my claws pierce your skin, a small poison spreads throughout your body. Don't worry, it's not fatal or anything, but you'll be in too much pain to fight back. Now, I can do this…" She grabbed Misty from behind and jumped high in the air, performing multiple back flips at high speed. Once she was high enough, she spun in a high speed spiral. "GRAND DRIVER!" With Misty in her vice grip, Kirara spiraled downwards, preparing to finish her off in one move.

Misty struggled to break free, but Kirara's overwhelming strength kept her lock. She had one chance to break free, and she was going to take it. She focused as much strength as she could on her spirit counterpart. She could feel the power of light flowing through her. "Spirit…SYNC!"

_CRASH!_

The dust on the ground exploded into the air, covering the two in a mist of dust. As the smoke cleared, a synchronized Misty was crouched on the ground panting. Kirara, receiving minor recoil damage from the Grand Driver attack and was winded for a moment. "Impressive, I didn't expect you to break out of my attack at the last second. Unfortunately, my Cat-Scratch Agony attack should still be affecting you."

Misty smirked. "Is that so?" She calmly placed her hands on her arms. "Regenerate!" Within moments, the wounds from Kirara's attack healed.

"Meow! That is SO cheating!" Kirara hissed.

"Hey, I'm a young lady fighting against a freakish, anthromorphic cat thingy with even more freakish strength, and you're calling _me_ a cheater?" Misty pointed accusingly.

"It doesn't matter! It's time for round 2—WHOA!"

"WAH!" A sudden rush of high powered wind lifted the two girls and blew the girls high in the air.

"CURSE YOU ZEROOOOOO!" Kirara shouted, flying away along with Misty.

"Let's see you two take on the mighty Zero, ruler of the skies!" Zero shouted, zipping around with speed that would put the fastest Pikachu to shame. The only thing visible was the small blurs of himself. He started running around Ash and Brock faster and faster until the two were engulfed in a whirlwind. "Hurricane Rhapsody!" Suddenly, Ash and Brock were hailed upon by a rain of bullets coming from all directions!

"Arg! This guy is too fast!" Brock said as he started blocking as many of the bullets as he could.

"I know what you mean! We need a plan, and fast!" Ash dodged and blocked shots as they flew around and at them.

"_Ash, Brock, I have a plan, but we need to be fast…"_ Takeshi started telling the two trainers the idea…

"That sounds like it would work, but how do you know?" Ash inquired.

"_Just trust me, my hunches are never wrong."_

Satoshi tossed Takeshi a flat glance. _"Just like how your hunches said woman prefer to be stalked?"_

"_Hey, I prefer the term attraction!"_

"Alright, enough of that. Let's hurry up!" Ash cupped his mouth to form a megaphone effect. "Hey Zero! So tell me, how many times did you dream about Kirara this week?"

"ACK!" Zero tripped and fell in surprise, which stopped his attack completely. "What kind of question was that? I don't dream about that wretched cat!"

"Oh come on, I bet you drool on your pillow at least five times a week."

"I do not! I never had, nor will I ever do that! Never never never never never!" Zero flailed his arms childishly.

"Zero and Kirara, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

Zero covered his eyes and shut his eyes. "Stop it!" He pouted, feeling mortified.

"Gotcha! Brock yelled, capturing the Flying Vizier from behind after disarming the guns in his hands.

"Hey, that was no fair! Lemme go!" The Vizier struggled to break Brock's grip, but he wasn't strong enough to get free. When he saw that didn't work, he managed to get a small, round steel ball from his sleeve and tossed it on the ground. "Swarm missiles, activate! Target: Humans!"

The ball opened many small hatches, unleashing a huge payload of tiny missiles, aiming at Ash and Brock. Brock had no choice but to let go and attempt to block the homing missiles. Ash dashed towards Zero as he jumped and rolled past the rockets. Multiple explosions erupted in the battlefield, decimating the earth.

"Eat this!" Zero dug into his sleeves again and pulled out a complicated looking laser rifle and started shooting Ash with the rapid fire laser weapon.

"HM!" Ash jumped over the first string of bullets and towards the Vizier, who unfortunately was all too ready for him.

"Charged shot!" Zero charged up his weapon and fired a powerful ball of yellow light at Ash.

"Psyche!" Ash performed a second jump in the air, barely going over the blast.

"What the!" Zero exclaimed, watching as Ash lunged towards him.

_SMACK!_

"AH!" Zero tumbled along the ground as he received the full brunt of Ash's fist on the face. The boy lay on the ground for a moment, winded and hurt.

"Huh?" Ash stared at his fist in surprise. "Wow, I didn't think I've gotten that strong."

"_Whether these kids are Viziers or not, they are still kids. I doubt their defenses are very high. We just have to get a few good hits in to be victorious. Don't let up!"_ Satoshi coached.

"Gotcha." Ash nodded. He regrouped with Brock and watched as Zero staggered to his feet.

"That hurt! You'll pay for that!" Zero started digging in his sleeves for more weapons—

_WHAM!_

"ARGH!" Zero was sent flying when a fist uppercutted him.

"That's what you get for blasting me away with that stupid wind of yours!" Kirara bellowed.

"Ash, Brock, you two alright?" Misty asked, still in her synched form.

"Yeah. You look a little hurt." Ash pointed to the small cuts on her arms and legs.

"This is nothing. Besides, the fight isn't over yet." Misty pointed to the two Viziers, who were arguing with each other.

"How dare you punch me? We're supposed to fight them, not each other!" Zero argued.

"You should talk! You sent me flying!"

"Enough! We'll decide what's what after we defeat those guys! We have to fight them as a team, no matter how stupid of an idea that is."

"Fine, we'll go with your dumb plan!" Kirara crouched on all fours while Zero pulled out dual mini machine guns.

"_Ash, it looks like they are going to get really serious. I suggest we end this quickly. Let's go!"_ Satoshi suggested.

"Right! Let's do it guys!" Ash and Brock both performed a spirit-sync with their spiritual allies and charged at the two Viziers along with Misty.

Outskirts of Pewter City – Team Nova

"HA!" Leon spun and whipped at Gary with high velocity, also throwing in a few high and low spin kicks. Gary expertly countered the kicks with his own attacks while side stepping and avoiding the powerful whip strikes.

_CRACK! CRACK!_

"Ngh!" Gary was struck twice on the chest by the whip, creating two diagonal gashes. He shot several bullets at the Grass Vizier, but only managed to graze the agile dog human.

_POW! WHAM!_

"ACK!" The Team Nova squad leader was uppercutted in the air, and then received a powerful spin kick to the stomach, sending him flying a few feet. However, he used the air time to shoot at Leon.

"Nice try!" Leon whipped the grass on the ground, causing some of the blades to fly up in the air. "Razor Grass!" He pointed towards Gary, commanding the blades of grass to fly at Gary and turning into lethal projectiles. The grass sliced through the bullets and gave Gary dozens of light cuts. The russet haired teen slammed his hands on the ground before falling and recovering with a back flip, regaining his balance.

'Damn…he seems a lot stronger than before…does this mean he's giving it his all this time?' Gary thought, panting. His eyes glanced over his teammates, who were being pushed back by the group of strange creatures. 'And these things…the Kaijudo…just what on earthy are they really? They appeared magically from a card, can talk, but yet they aren't Pokémon. Does this mean Pokémon aren't the only creatures that exist in this world?'

"Hey!" Leon yelled, jumping towards Gary. "You're in the middle of a battle! Stop thinking and give me a challenge!" He lashed his whip at Gary, who barely reacted just in time to repel the attack using the metal on his handgun.

"Heh…gotcha…" Gary smirked, pointing at Leon's chest with his other handgun.

_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_

"GAH!" Leon received three gunshot wounds in his stomach, which were very painful. "Grr…you bastard! I'll make you pay!"

_CRACK!_

"AH!" Gary got lashed across the face with the whip, creating a large cut that stretched over his face and one of his eyes, forcing him to shut it.

Leon lifted his whip in the air and started spinning it rapidly. "Stinger Vortex!"

_WHOOSH!_

"Whoa!" Gary jumped in the air, dodging the deadly finisher just in time. As he was in the air, he noticed a lot of the grass exploded in the air, and immediately realized that he fell for a trap!

"Razor Grass!" Leon shouted, commanding the grass to fly at Gary in flurries. The sharp projectiles flew at a Gary and cut him several times

"Argh!" Gary shielded himself the best he could as he fell inside a very bushy tree.

Leon pursued him and leapt towards the same location Gary fell into. However, upon entry, Leon didn't see Gary, but a cleverly placed gun with a string attached to the trigger. "Damn!"

_BLAM!_

"ACK!" The Grass Vizier quickly grasped his wounded shoulder and jumped away from the tree, only to notice someone else jumping along with him from behind.

"Eat this!" Gary aimed his gun at Leon and was about to pull the trigger.

"Rage of Nature!" Leon yelled hurriedly.

_BLAM!_

"What?" Gary stared in surprised when he noticed a long contorted branch blocking his shot. Leon used the trunk to swing down and land a downward kick on Gary.

_SLAM!_

"Ack!" Gary coughed up blood as his body was slammed upon the ground. He noticed Leon lashing his whip at him just in time to roll out of the way and kick the Vizier in the stomach, forcing him back. The two paused for a beat, trying to catch their breath.

"You hold more promise than I first anticipated. Looks like I'll have to actually try to kill you this time." Leon smirked, slowly straightening himself.

"Yeah, yeah, big talk. Just shut up and fight already!"

"Hmph! So be it! RAAAH!" Leon dashed at Gary while lashing at him viciously. Team Nova was being pushed deeper into the forest by the Grass Vizier and his Kaijudo beast.

Outskirts of Pewter City – Team Shadow

Katana gracefully twirled her crystal sword and stabbed it into the earth. "Frost Field!" The ground beneath May's feet suddenly turned to ice. In a smooth maneuver, the Ice Vizier pulled out her blade and swung her sword at the girls. "Blizzard of Blades!" Suddenly, ice sword copies flew from her sword and at Team Shadow!

"Whoa!" May successfully leapt to the side to dodge the swarm of swords, but started to slide uncontrollably on the ice floor and flying into a tree.

_SLAM!_

May fell to the ground, twitching in pain. "Ow..."

"Don't worry May, I got your back!" Duplica pushed herself off a tree and began sliding towards Katana's direction. She dug into her side pockets and pulled out several round, black balls. She hurled them towards the Vizier, who stabbed her sword into the ice floor.

"Pillar Impaler!" Katana called out. A wall of tall ice spikes extruded out of the ground and in front of the bombs, canceling out the attack. Without missing a beat, Katana leapt at Duplica over the ice wall, who took out her combat dagger and blocked the blade strike. Duplica was fairly skilled with the knife, but was still no match for the Ice Vizier.

_CHING!_

Duplica's knife flipped in the air and stabbed into a tree. Katana grinned victoriously, pointing her sword at the blue haired girl. "I win."

"Not quite yet!" Melody deactivated her cloaking device and aimed her rifle at Katana from the side.

_BLAM!_

"Me-ow!" Katana yelped, barely dodging the shot. "Little girls shouldn't play with such dangerous toys! Blizzard of Blades!" She caused another wave of ice sword to fly at Duplica and Melody. Melody was able to dodge the attack, but Duplica didn't have enough time to avoid it.

_SHATTER!_

"What?" Katana gasped in surprise. May took out her two thin sabers from the sheath behind her and cut down the flying ice swords heading towards Duplica! "My, you seem fairly skilled. Perhaps a little blade on blade will entertain you?

May took on a guard position and faced Katana. "I don't see why not. Sounds fun."

"And don't worry, your friends will be entertained as well." Katana held her hand in the air and conjured magical energy. Soon, a card appeared in her hand. "I summon Illusion Fish!" The card transformed into a ball of light and then appeared as a very beautiful blue translucent fish that floated in the air as though it was swimming in it.

"You called for me master?" Illusion Fish said, floating around Katana.

"Yes, I would love it if you entertained those two kids over there while I take on the brunette. Now go!"

"Of course!" Illusion Fish swam swiftly at Duplica and Melody, shooting high pressured water attacks at them and attacking with its fins.

Katana turned to May, holding her katana in an offensive stance. "Now that it's just you and me, we can call it a duel! HIYAA!"

_CLANG!_

"Ngh!" May blocked the slash attack, but because of the slippery floor, she was thrown off balance.

_SLASH!_

"HA! HA! YA! RAH!" Katana continued to swipe at May with all kinds of slash attacks. May was barely defending herself and couldn't even find an opening. However, they were both equal in skill and continued to exchange attacks as they battled through the forest.

Pewter City – Ash, Misty and Brock

The battle between Ash and the Viziers grew more and more vicious. The landscape suffered a great deal of damage due to the powerful attacks. While Kirara worked on attacks using brute strength, Zero used his long range attacks to cause the gang problems. 2 minutes remained for the spirit-sync with Ash, Misty and Brock.

"Shadow Kick!" Ash called out, flying at Zero with a dark element kick. His attack was about to land when Kirara tackled him from the side. The blow was powerful enough to send Ash flying a few meters.

"Heh, weakling!" Kirara taunted, sticking her tongue at Ash. Suddenly, her instincts kicked in. She turned around to notice Misty raising her fist to strike her down. Before the attack landed, a sudden hail of bullets rained down on Misty, courtesy of Zero's dual machine guns.

"HM!" Both Brock and Ash jumped at Zero in the air, who didn't have enough time to use his wind skills to avoid the double strike.

_SMACK!_

"ARGH!" Ash and Brock crashed onto the ground after receiving a spin kick from Kirara, who jumped in the air and defended Zero. Both Viziers distanced themselves and Ash and co. before going into the final offensive.

"Man, these guys are working well together. Speed and power combined makes such a strong combination." Ash panted, trying to get his second wind.

"_Hmm…"_ Satoshi analyzed the two Viziers carefully. Somehow, he wasn't convinced that this was their best. It wasn't the fact they weren't trying, but their teamwork was unpolished and rusty. _"There…might be a way to break up their teamwork."_

"_Hm? What do you mean?"_ Takeshi asked, curious.

"_It may look like they make a great team, but something is wrong with them. If you notice, they are arguing with each other now."_ True to Satoshi's words, the two children were biting each others heads off. _"I saw a few mistakes while we attacked them. The first was when Zero jumped in the air to shoot at Misty. While he did protect Kirara from Misty's attack, his bullets still injured Kirara since she was still next to Misty. The other time was when Ash and Brock was knocked down from the air. Kirara's spin kick also struck Zero. This leads me to believe that they are new to the term teamwork."_

"Hey, you're right! Now we just need to work on a plan to mess them up. But how?" Ash furrowed his brow for a moment to create a plan, and then thought of one. "I got it!" He turned to face the Viziers, and then cupped his hands to create a megaphone effect. "Hey, you guys should fight together more often. Ya look cute together!"

"EH?" Zero and Kirara glanced at each other and jumped back frightfully. "You gotta be kidding! Never in a million years!"

Misty smirked slyly. She knew exactly what Ash was planning. "Hey Ash, I'll bet those two got a HUGE crush on each other. Just look at how lovey dovey they are."

"It's not true!" Zero and Kirara yelled, red from embarrassment.

"Hey Zero!" Brock called, joining in the taunting. "How often do you cuddle with Kirara?"

"WHAT? I do not cuddle with that idiotic feline!" Zero roared.

"Idiotic feline?" Kirara roared. "Why you…!"

"Aw, don't be mad you two. Just kiss and make up like newlyweds are supposed to do!" Misty yelled. Ash and Brock couldn't help but burst into a fit of laughter at how red Zero and Kirara's faces gotten.

"I don't like that good-for-nothing mutt!" Kirara snapped.

"Good-for-nothing? GOOD-FOR-NOTHING? I'LL SHOW YOU GOOD-FOR-NOTHING YOU STUPID CAT! RAAAH!" Zero leapt at Kirara in a fit of rage. The two were suddenly in a full-blown war, wrestling and rolling on the ground while yelling obscenities.

"Well, looks like our job is done." Ash shrugged, disabling the spirit-sync.

"But you got to admit, those two are adorable when they fight." Misty giggled.

"I agree. I guess those two won't be bothering us for awhile." Brock sighed, relived.

"_Don't forget, Leon and Katana are still around somewhere. Also, I think those two went after the people who had been trailing us for the past while."_ Satoshi noted. He glanced over towards the forest area, sensing strong amounts of mana coming from the direction. _"Over there. I think the ones I recognize are the people from Team Nova. We should help them out."_

"I agree. Let's go." Ash led Misty and Brock towards the same location as Team Nova.

Outskirts of Pewter City – Team Nova

_SMACK!_

"ARGH!" Gary was sent flying back and crashed onto the ground. There were many cuts and bruises on his body, and he was very fatigued. However, though his teammates were also weakened and injured, the Kaijudo beasts were defeated, and Leon was badly injured.

"Very impressive. Even at full strength, you still gave me trouble. However, you are still far from defeating me. I shall be sure to end your life right now. Farewell…" Leon raised his whip and was about to split Gary's head open with it, when he stopped and glanced ahead.

"Meow!" Katana appeared from the air, landing next to Leon in a back flip. May soon stepped into the scene, followed by Melody and Duplica. An injured Illusion Fish swam its way towards Katana.

"Master, these guys are strong! What shall we do?" Illusion Fish asked worriedly.

"Hmm, return Illusion Fish. Recover your strength for the time being." Katana extended her hand towards the flying fish. Illusion Fish glowed brightly and transformed into a ball of light, floating to Katana's hand and turning into a card. The Ice Vizier turned to Leon. "It looks like you've been having trouble also. What do you suppose we do?"

Leon glanced left and right. Team Nova was on one side, and Team Shadow was on another. He knew how troubling Team Nova could be, but if Team Shadow was able to hold their on against Katana, then they could definitely be a threat. "I think we should retreat for the time being, but not without leaving a farewell gift. I still have enough Mana to summon one creature." Leon conjured up another card in his hand, almost draining all of his remaining mana. "Now, I'll summon one of my favorite creatures. I summon Cavern Raider!" From the card in his hand appeared a 4 foot tall blue rabbit humanoid with a brown breastplate, hood, and a small wavering cape.

Cavern Raider's light red eyes glanced at her master. "You called for my assistance?" She inquired.

"Yes. I need you to destroy those enemies for me while I—Guh!" Leon knelt on the ground, clutching the bullet wounds in his stomach.

"Leon!" Katana knelt next to him, grasping his shoulder. "We have to get your wounds treated immediately." She created a card in her hands. "I summon Revolver Fish! Take care of our enemies!" Katana summon two green frog-like creatures, who stood in front of Cavern Raider. The two Revolver Fish made an alienated grunt, confirming they understood their master's orders. Katana slung Leon's arm over her shoulder and started to escape when she glanced at May. "Our battle isn't over. I plan to have a rematch with you someday, so be ready. Farewell until then!" Katana and Leon fled, leaving their Kaijudo to do their battling.

"Hey, May." Gary called. "I know we're enemies, but wouldn't you agree that these guys are a real pain?"

"Yeah. I'm guessing you want to work together to take them down? I'm fine with that as long as it is just a temporary truce."

"Exactly what I had in mind. Alright guys, let's do it!"

"Yeah!" Everyone cheered, increasing their moral.

"Hmm…how interesting, but unfortunately futile." Cavern Raider flashed her palm at Gary. A small, golden, archaic ring appeared in front of it. "Your little 'truce' shall be buried here, along with your corpses."

_ZAM!_

"Ngh!" Wes managed to deflect the beam shot with his arm guard, searing the shield. "Heh, you monsters aren't that bad. This ought to be interesting. RAAH!" Wes charged at Cavern Raider with his blitz blade.

"Revolver Fish, defend!" Cavern Raider shouted. The two creatures opened their mouths and revealed a cannon-shaped mouth, charging up powerful energy. When they released the attack, the two beams struck Wes, who luckily guarded in time. "ARGH!" The force blew him away and sent him crashing on the ground.

"Wes! Are you alright?" Gary asked.

"Ugh…don't worry about me, I'm fine, though that blast hurt like hell." Wes grunted as he stood up, using his sword as a crutch.

Brendan narrowed his eyes suspiciously. He needed to see something. "HAAA!" Taking out his saber, he charged after Cavern Raider.

"Defend!" The Kaijudo rabbit creature commanded. The two Revolver Fish opened their mouths and shot at Brendan, who skillfully dodged the attack. Swiftly, he ran towards one of the Revolver Fish, and was about to strike when he noticed something strange. "Defend!" The Kaijudo shouted again. The two creatures shot another beam at Brendan. The white haired teen maneuvered past the lasers and jumped back.

Backing up, he noticed something else, which Brendan started putting two and two together. "I see. It looks like you have a hole in your defense, one that will be your demise!"

Cavern Raider smirked. "Oh? And just what would that be?"

"It's those two defenders you have. They never act on there own, but only when told to do so. Also, their power is a lot higher than yours. As from what I've seen so far, your blast attacks are powerful, but those fish…they could easily kill one of us in a single blast if it wasn't for our armor. With all of this information in mind, I can defeat you using only two more people." Brendan glanced back and forth between his teammates and Team Shadow. "…And I'll choose Wes and May for that task."

May blinked in surprise. "Wait…me?"

"Go ahead and do what he says. He is always one for finding an enemy's weakness. If you follow his directions, I'm sure we'll win." Gary assured.

"Hm…alright, but I'll be keeping an eye on those two while I'm out there. Duplica, Melody, prepare to be back up, alright?"

"Sure thing!" The two Team Shadow members nodded.

"Ritchie, Rui, you guys also. We'll let them do their thing, but be ready for anything.

"Right." The two said, standing next to Gary.

"Alright, are you two ready?" Brendan asked. Wes and May nodded, prepping there swords for battle.

"Ready when you are brother!"

"I'm all set."

"Good. Alright, let's go! May, go to the left, Wes, go right. I'll go through the middle!" Brendan dashed forward as the other two sprinted in their respective directions.

"Foolish. Revolver Fish, attack your closest enemy!" Cavern Raider commanded, aiming her beam attack at Brendan. Predicting the trajectory of the attacks, Brendan evaded the beams while running at the creature. When he got close enough, he slashed at Cavern Raider, only to miss when she jumped back and shot move beams at him. While dodging and attacking, he noticed May and Wes avoiding the Revolver Fish's attacks. However, he momentarily took his attention away from his opponent.

_ZAM!_

"Argh…!" Brendan gasped as he received a beam shot to the chest. The blast destroyed a good part of the underlying armor. If he received another direct hit, he was as good as dead. Cavern Raider wasted no time as she went into melee combat. Being very flexible and agile, she was able to smoothly dodge Brendan's blade strikes while throwing in some of her own attacks. When she performed a back spin kick, Brendan blocked the attack with his sword and spun into a horizontal slash. The attack managed to cut her stomach lightly, but that didn't stop her onslaught of quick and furious punch attacks.

_SMACK!_

"ACK!" Brendan received an uppercut on the chin, which was powerful enough to send him reeling back in pain.

_WHAM! SLAM!_

Brendan was kicked in the stomach, and then smashed him in the same spot with her elbow. The white haired teen knelt on the ground, clutching his stomach and coughing.

"It was foolish to think you could win. Now you die…" Cavern Raider aimed her palm at Brendan. The magic circle appeared on her hand as she charged her attack.

"Wes, NOW!" Brendan yelled.

"Hm?" Cavern Raider glanced upward to notice Wes lunging at her with his sword.

"Revolver Fish, defend!" Cavern Raider shouted, pointing to Wes. All three Kaijudo creatures aimed their beams at Wes. The beams were almost fully charged…

"May, it's your turn!" Brendan called, getting up quickly. Both he and May darted towards a Revolver Fish and kicked their faces, changing the target…to each other. The two frog-like Kaijudos shot their attacks at each other simultaneously, knocking themselves out in the process. At the same time, Cavern Raider's attack was released towards Wes, who defended using his arm guard. Not only that, but also used the force of the blast to make himself perform an aerial flip over the blast.

"HAAAAA!"

_CHING!_

Wes landed behind the Cavern Raider, who fell to the floor, injured by Wes's powerful slash attack. "Gah…damn you! How did you get through our defense?"

"Hmph, simple." Brendan boasted, sheathing his saber, "I was the main distraction while May and Wes caught the attention of the Revolver Fish. I attacked you and drew your attention in order for us to get into position. When you hit me with that blast, I let you do that on purpose, making you think you had won. After that, it was all about planning. By the way, did you think a lot of those moves I did were really just to attack you? I was actually relaying directions to my partners, who thankfully noticed it. The reason I chose both May and Wes were three fold. One, they both had the highest stamina of everyone else, and were equipped with blades, which are great for close combat against long range type enemies. Two, May, being the leader of her squad should be well versed in silent communication, and Wes is my best partner, he knows me better than anyone else."

"Okay, what's number 3?"

"…They're both disposable…"

Wes sat in a lonely corner, a cloud of rejection hanging over him. "That's so cruel…"

"WHAT?" May roared, storming up to Brendan. "You mean to tell me you didn't care whether we died or not?"

Brendan stared blankly at an irritated May. "Did I stutter?"

"Grr…That's it! PREPARE TO DIE!" May was about to strangle the sly Team Nova member when Duplica and Melody restrained the enraged brunette.

"Tch, that was clever of you, but next time, you won't be as lucky." Cavern Raider and the two Revolver Fishes transformed into a ball of light, and then zipped in the direction Leon and Katana fled. Everyone gave a deep sigh in relief. They were victorious.

"Hey, Gary, are you alright?" Ash called from the distance.

"Hm?" Gary looked up to notice Ash and co. heading towards their direction. "Oh, hey Ash. I've been better, but I'm otherwise alright."

"That's a relief. Glad to see you five are alright."

"…Five?" Gary glanced around, only to realize that Team Shadow had disappeared without a trace. Talk about swift. "Oh, yeah, us. At least you guyse are fine."

"It's been rough, but at least we got through it."

Brock went to help Gary stand on his feet. "Hey Gary, there's enough space in my gym to let you guys stay, so why don't we go back and get some rest? I'm sure you guys are exhausted. I won't take no for an answer."

"…Yeah, rest sounds pretty good." Gary smiled weakly at the Pokémon breeder. Ash, along with Team Nova, headed towards Brock's gym to rest up for the night.

Pewter City Gym –Guest Room

Gary and his teammates were introduced to a large room which was comfortable and roomy. However, there were only three beds, although they were large enough to fit two people. So the debate in question was who would sleep in the same bed as their teammate?

"Hey Rui, you wanna share a bed with me?" Wes asked, grinning sneakily.

"Oh no you don't. You're not gonna pull any of that crap while I'm around." Brendan denied, dragging Wes to his side of the room.

"Aww…so unfair…"

"Quit whining. You're sleeping with me and that's final."

There was a moment of silence. Wes stared oddly at Brendan. "…Brother, while I'm fine with whatever kind of life you choose, incest is not the way to go…"

"ACK!" Brendan face-faulted in shock. "I DIDN'T MEAN IT THAT WAY YOU IDIOT!"

"Now, now, there's no need to feel so embarrassed. I'm sure there are a lot of guys who are in the same boat as you…" Wes took a moment to think about his words, then sweat-dropped. "…Okay, so maybe you're the only one…"

"QUIT MAKING ME SOUND SO DIRTY!" Brendan yelled, shaking Wes vigorously.

"Okay, Okay! I was just kidding!" Wes pleaded, getting dizzy with the shaking.

"Alright you two, break it up. Comedy hour is over for tonight." Ritchie said.

"…But it's only been two minutes…" Wes commented, confused.

Everyone face-faulted. "It's a figure of speech you moron!" Brendan snapped.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Sheesh, can't you guys take a joke?" Wes sighed as he got in his and Brendan's bed.

"Oh, and Wes, if you happened to 'magically' appear in Rui's bed in the middle of the night, I'll have you fixed!"

"Ehehehe…I'll keep that in mind…" Wes laughed nervously.

"Alright you guys, good night!" Gary, Ritchie and Rui started settling into their own beds. Gary and Ritchie shared a bed while Rui got to have her own. Everyone but Gary quickly fell asleep. His mind was too occupied with his thoughts on the Viziers and Team Shadow. The things he saw today, magic, summoning, power, never did he see beings other than Pokémon so capable. It was truly frightening. Also, what was up with Team Shadow? Why did they suddenly leave when Ash arrived? Perhaps he was thinking too much, but it could be possible that their mission is somehow involved with Ash. If so, he had to keep a very close eye on him. All of this in mind, one thing was certain…

The danger was only beginning.

* * *

And that's chapter 10. Sorry for such a late update, but I've been really, really, really busy with everything! I hope that my next update won't take as long. Please review until your hearts content. Charity is good for the soul… 

Ah, on another note, I've decided to try a new format of displaying music. Lemme know if you prefer this over my usual method.


	11. Rocket Blues

**_Chapter 11 – Rocket Blues_**

Pewter City Gym – Guest Room

The very next morning, Ash left his room to meet up with Team Nova, only to discover they were long gone. Though he felt a little dispirited about Gary leaving before he could talk to him, he knew Team Nova was a very busy and secretive force, so it was expected. After eating breakfast and setting up their equipment, Ash and co. picked up their Pokémon from the center and headed towards their next destination, Mt. Moon.

Hours into their traveling, including a few Random Battles here and there, Ash and the group arrived at the base of Mt. Moon. Reaching a few hundred feet in the air, Mt. Moon loomed over the landscape, casting a great shadow over our heroes. Ash recognized the place, remembering the time he met Seymour and the Clefairy. What was new about the mountain was path created around it so travelers didn't have to worry about crossing through the dark cave. Normally, Ash would have taken the route around it, but…

_Beep……beep……beep……_

"Hm?" Ash whipped out his Pokédex and glanced over the radar. A shard of the Final Destiny was inside the cave! "A shard's nearby. That's pretty convenient."

"Yeah, but we also always seem to run into something whenever we find a shard. I just hope the same doesn't happen here." Misty commented.

"You know what they say: _Nothing ventured, nothing gained_. So let's start venturing!" With that, Ash led the group inside Mt. Moon.

Little did Ash know, he was being closely followed by two familiar people and a Meowth, who hid in a bush. "Looks like the twerps are gonna explore Mt. Moon." Meowth said, spying with a pair of high-tech binoculars.

Jessie rolled her eyes at the Cat Pokémon. "Brilliant deduction Captain Obvious, like we couldn't figure that one out!" Meowth snarled at the comment, but decided to stay silent. He knew her wrath too well.

"Didn't the twerp mention something about a shard? I wonder if it's one of those thingies the boss had been searching frantically for." James recalled.

"Maybe, though I have no idea why he would want something like that. Sure, they're pretty, but if he wanted something beautiful he should've just called me." Jessie did a pose as she said this, making her teammates sweat-drop.

"I really don't think the boss is in the mood for a seizure…" James mumbled under his breath.

_SMACK!_

"I heard that!" Jessie snapped, smacking James over the head with her paper fan. "Let's hurry up and follow those twerps! There's no time to lose!"

"Right!" James and Meowth nodded, following the bossy red head inside the cave.

Mt. Moon - Base

If the cave had to be described in a simple word it would be dark. Since most of the Pokémon residing in the cave were nocturnal, light of any kind was minimal at best. Ash had Pikachu light up the trail so everyone could see and hopefully not get too lost. Misty, not exactly a fan of dark creepy caves, huddled close to Ash to feel a bit more insecure. Brock followed from a few feet away, close enough to not lose them but far enough to give them space. The walk was uneventful and quiet. Not even the spirits were saying much, all three submerged in their own thoughts.

Satoshi, normally loud and obnoxious, had been brooding over thoughts he had for the last few days. Though he studied the art of spiritual syncing in the past, he'd hoped not to experience such a thing, knowing how boring of a life it was. Though he didn't show it, he really missed how life used to be. Even though he was constantly in danger due to increasing dangers of the Luminarian war, he had something then that he didn't have now, freedom. He didn't dislike Ash as much as he used to (though it was still there), but he really hated being cooped up in someone else's body, not having a chance to enjoy life like they could. All he could do was lend his guidance and powers, hoping that in the long run he could regain his body. Even if he could regain temporary materialization due to Ash's Noctowl, it wasn't the type of life he wanted, where he would have to rely on a Pokémon just to exist. Being a spirit did have its good points though. He didn't need to worry about eating, and if he wanted to sleep, he could just mask his presence by hiding within the corridors of Ash's mind. However, those troubles were what made life more interesting. Not knowing when your next meal was. Watching your back whenever sleeping in the wilderness. Battling day in and day out in order to survive. That was life he enjoyed, and it was even better with his friends—no, they were no longer his friends. He still hadn't forgiven them for betraying his trust when he found out they were the guardians of his enemies. Then again…he did the same. How could he blame them for something he did himself? Was he truly such a hypocrite? His mind was muddled with these questions and more.

Kasumi wasn't faring any better than Satoshi was. One moment, she was fighting an evil sorcerer bent on obtaining the Final Destiny, which in that time was whole. The next minute, she wakes up fused with someone who looked just like her, was now in a foreign land and the Final Destiny was scattered throughout the planet. If she had any questions in mind, it was only one: What the _hell_ happened? Such a shock would be powerful enough to give someone a heart attack. The fact she saw Satoshi again was almost enough to put her in a state of shock. She was hoping not to see him again, for many, many reasons. When it came to reasons for such a thing, finding out Satoshi was her enemy wasn't at the top of her list. Of all the guardians who used to be her friend, Satoshi was the closest to her. The mere thought of fighting someone who used to be close to her broke her heart. It was then the truth about the world was revealed to her in full force, something she wasn't nearly ready for at first. She wised up and gathered as many truths as she could, making sure to avoid her past naivety. But even then…there were some things she couldn't avoid, no matter how hard she tried. That was what bothered her most.

Takeshi, unlike his two spiritual allies, had less troubling thoughts on his mind. His concentration was focused on the two teens in front of him and Brock. It was easy to tell Misty had a thing for Ash, but it was even easier to tell Ash had no clue about anything related to love and romance. If there was anything he and Brock shared, which were many things, it was the desire to get any potential couples together. It was ironic, in the sense that Brock wasn't the only one who could never get a girl. As despairing as the idea was, Takeshi wasn't one to let things get him down. When he used to travel with the five guardians, he was always the mediator and sensible one…well, sensible when there wasn't a Jenny or Joy nearby. Thankfully, those girls still existed and looked as cute as ever. If he still had his body, he could easily…well, that was a story for another day. It was time to work with the most potential couple nearby, namely Ash and Misty. He also thought Satoshi and Kasumi might get along better if Ash and Misty got together, not to mention have fun at their expense.

"_So tell me, what kind of chemistry do those two have?_" Takeshi asked, referring to Ash and Misty.

'_Oh, them? Well, I haven't seen them for awhile, but I've known them for quite a bit. Ash isn't the romantic type, so he hadn't experience the feelings that Misty has for him yet. I'm sure with a little push, Ash will recognize his feelings. Misty's been hoping for that, but she also knew he needed to mature a bit more before he understood such feelings. I've been trying here and there, but Ash is far too dense to get the concept easily. Maybe if we got the two stuck together for a while, something would happen…'_

"_You don't say…_" Takeshi thought about Brock's words. Ash and Misty. Alone. Cave. The two alone. The two alone in a cave. What could be better than that? "_Hey Brock, I got a plan. This is what you do…_"

About an hour later, Ash and the rest ended up in a two-way path. One would be a detour while the other would lead deeper into the cave and eventually out. "Hey Brock, which way do we go?" Ash asked.

Brock looked down on the map and noted the correct path. "The path on the right is the way out. Let's go through there."

"Okay." Ash nodded and headed in the direction along with Misty and Pikachu, who lit the way. Brock on the other hand took the correct path, which was to the left. He couldn't help but release a small chuckle. They were going to be mad with him later, but hopefully the two would produce results out of this. Ash especially needed a wake up call.

Unfortunately, an hour into the cave, Brock realized he couldn't see very well in the darkness…

Mt. Moon – Ash and Misty

With Ash and Misty, they've wondered deep into the cave, only to end up horribly lost, and the fact Brock had the map and currently wasn't with them made the situation much worse. "I can't believe this…!" Misty exasperated. "Remind me to bash Brock's head in as soon as we find him…"

"I'll second that…" Ash sighed, exhausted from the constant walking.

"Pika…" Pikachu's Flash attack started to dim, losing energy from the constant use.

Ash noticed this and wanted to remedy the situation. "Hey, let's find a place to rest for a bit."

"Works for me. I'm exhausted." Misty immediately sat against the wall, resting her weary legs.

Ash followed Misty's example and sat next to her, Pikachu lying on his lap. "I hope we find the exit soon. I really don't want to stay here forever."

"Well…staying here for a little while wouldn't hurt…" Misty yawned.

"Misty? Are you alright?" Ash asked, noting her drooping eyes. To his surprise, she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"I'm just a little sleepy. Just give me five minutes…" Funny enough, it only took two minutes for the red head to fall asleep.

Ash, feeling comfortable yet uncomfortable, stiffened nervously. '_Okay…keep your cool. This is no big deal. It's just Misty after all, sleeping on my shoulder. We've slept on the same bed before, so this is nothing. Nope, nothing at all…_' He told himself, trying to quell the nervous feeling in his stomach. Unfortunately for him, it didn't help when she hugged him unconsciously, causing him to blush considerably. '_Okay, now she's sleeping AND hugging me. Well, it's not like things could get any weirder…_' He should've never thought of that sentence, since right after that thought Pikachu fell asleep and shut off his biological flashlight, putting the three in total darkness. Ash could only sigh. '_Somehow, I feel I deserved that._'

Five minutes past and Ash was still wide awake. His arm started to feel uncomfortable, which was slowly starting to irritate him. He could move it around, but since Misty was still clutched onto him, there wasn't a real spot to place it. Fortunately, there was one place he could put it where he was sure to be a comfortable spot.

Unfortunately, it just happened to be on Misty's shoulders.

The red on Ash's face brightened, almost enough to illuminate the darkness. Did he dare do such a thing? What if she woke up seeing his arm around her? Would she yell at him, kill him, or let it slide? He might've decided not to, had the annoying pain in his arm not increased within the next few minutes. Finally giving up, he shifted his arm to gently embrace Misty, who strangely sighed in delight. '_Well…this isn't so bad…_' He thought, relieved. A small smiled graced his lips. '_I think I could get used to this…as long as she doesn't kill me for it…_'

Little did the two know, two familiar spirits were watching. They felt disgusted…yet very envious…

Mt. Moon - Brock

Brock, unfortunate enough to be unprepared for pitch-black ventures, barely managed to grope his way through Mt. Moon's interior, repeatedly attacked by the Pokémon habitats who felt he was a trespasser. "You know…" Brock started, wincing after walking into a wall. "Remind me to never listen to your hair-brained schemes ever again…"

"_It seemed like a good idea at the time. I'm sure your friends will find their way out…eventually…_" Takeshi shrugged visibly.

"I just hope those two enjoy their alone time…" This was followed by a depressed sigh. "Why can't I be that lucky…?"

"Hey, cheer up! I'm sure we'll find the right person for us!"

"Yeah, I've been telling myself that for years and still there's no hope…" Brock's shoulder's sagged as he pouted over his failure to obtain a girlfriend. But then, something occurred to him. "Wait, you said we. Does that mean you've had just as bad luck?"

"_Unfortunately, yes...this sucks…_" Takeshi concluded, sighing. Sheer depression clouded over the two as they traversed blindly through the cave.

_CRASH!_

Brock crashed into someone in front of him. By instinct, he grabbed the person's hand. His woman-seeking senses tingled, signaling that the person's hand belonged to a woman. "Hey miss, are you alright?"

The woman, currently undetectable due to the darkness, held tightly onto Brock's hand, allowing herself to be straightened up. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." She grumbled, obviously irritated.

"Hey, sorry about bumping into you like that. You can barely tell what's what in this crazy cave." Brock apologized.

"I guess…"

"Is…something wrong?" The breeder asked, noting the anger in her tone. He somehow found it familiar.

The female sighed. "First, giving back my hand would help…"

"Huh? Oh! Sorry!" Brock released her hand quickly, a little embarrassed. "Kinda forgot I was still holding it. Hehehe…"

"I see. You're one of those, huh? Oh well, as long as you don't try anything, I don't care. Let's just get out of here—AH!" The girl shrieked and sat on the floor, clutching her leg.

"Hey, are you okay?" Brock asked. He wasn't able to see, but he could tell the girl was somehow hurt.

"Of course I'm not okay! I think I hurt my ankle when you bumped into me. Ow…" The girl seethed as the pain in her ankle throbbed.

Brock carefully searched through the darkness, being extra careful not to touch the woman where he shouldn't, until he found the ankle the woman was holding onto. "Let me see if it is broken." The woman opted to refuse, but the pain started to increase, which changed her mind rather quickly.

"Just be quick about it…" She painfully removed her boot, exposing the sore ankle. Brock lightly tapped on different spots of the foot, noting when she would hiss in pain.

"Hmm…it's not broken, but just sprained. You definitely can't walk through a cave like this…"

"Gee, aren't you brilliant?"

Even in the darkness, Brock could tell she rolled her eyes. Trying his best to be a gentleman, he decided to ignore her snide remarks. "Hang on a minute. Lemme do something…" Digging into his backpack, he took out some bandages then carefully applied first aid the woman's swollen ankle. "Hey, if we're going to help each other out of here, we might as well get to know each other. My name's Brock. What's yours?"

The girl wanted to complain, but knew the guy had a point. Being that she was injured, she was in no shape to do anything else but comply. "It's…Jessie…"

Mt. Moon – Ash and Misty

With Ash, it had been an hour since Misty took her nap. Ash had managed to sleep a little as well, being sure to gather up some extra strength before continuing his trek inside Mt. Moon. However, the sudden sounds of two people approaching awoke Pikachu, who instantly turned on his Flash attack, enlightening the current area of the cave. Both Ash and Misty awoke thanks to Pikachu's light and saw the two people approach. Both parties gasped in shock when they recognized each other.

"You're Team Rocket!" Ash and Misty gasped simultaneously.

"And you're the twe—Ash!" James corrected quickly, seeing the glint of anger in Ash's eyes.

"I should've known you guys would try to chase us here! Pikachu, get ready!" Ash cried. Pikachu's cheeks crackled with electricity, preparing to send James and Meowth blasting off.

James's shoulders shrugged pathetically. "Just make it quick. We'll probably get out of here faster anyway…" Meowth cowered behind James, hoping it would reduce the impact of Pikachu's Thunderbolt attack.

Ash blinked. Misty blinked. Even Pikachu was inclined to blink. Misty took one look at Ash's face and just knew what he was going to say. "Ash…? Don't tell me you're gonna…"

"I'm afraid so…" Ash sighed. Sensing this, Pikachu held off his attack, but still kept up his guard. "Okay James, spill it. What's wrong this time?"

James and Meowth flopped on the ground, releasing a long sigh. "Well…you probably know what it is by now. It happened again…"

Ash and Pikachu slapped their foreheads in sync, very familiar with this occurrence. "Okay, so you and Jessie got into another fight?"

"Fight? Ash, what's going on?" Misty asked, rightfully confused.

"Well…this started happening sometime during my travels in the Orre region. He and Jessie had been getting into more and more arguments with each other lately, either splitting apart for days at a time or they won't say anything to each other. I don't know how or why, but it's been happening longer than I care to remember. Trust me, it's even more annoying than fighting them time and time again, but at least it's not as bad as falling into pits and everything."

"Oh…" Was the only thing Misty could say. She really didn't expect such drama from Team Rocket. If anything, they were always in high spirits.

"Yeah, and as for me, I know when to stay away from Jessie. It's whenever she's angry…which is pretty much all the time…" Meowth commented.

"And that's what I'm getting sick of!" James's expression turned into a deep scowl. "For five years it's been like this! She's been getting worse and worse, and I just can't take it anymore! I would rather hang out with Batch than Jessie at this point!"

"Butch, James, it's Butch." Ash corrected. It took months of lessons, but Ash finally mastered that blasted name.

"Yeah, him. I mean, what will it take to make Jessie not so mean and stubborn? I've tried absolutely _everything_. There is just no getting through to that woman!"

"No kidding…" Ash pondered on the matter. Even though James's whining about the situation was irritating, he felt sorry for the guy. He tried giving James advice on what to do, but none his ideas seem to work. Sometimes, it worsened the situation. Perhaps if he could get the two to actually cooperate with each other for more than a day, then he could probably get some peace and quiet from James…and himself. "Well, to be honest…I really can't think of anything. Truthfully, I can't see why you even bother to stick around her."

"Speaking of sticking…" Meowth started, snickering, "When did you two get so close?"

"Hm? What do you…AH!" That was when both Ash and Misty realized they were still holding onto each other. Shooting away, they both flushed in embarrassment. It also didn't help that James, Meowth, and even Pikachu, were laughing at their expense. "That was not funny!" The two bellowed, still blushing.

"Hahaha, oh man, I needed that!" James said, still laughing a little.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up why don't ya? See if I help you again!" Ash huffed, crossing his arms.

"Sorry, I'll stop." James immediately stopped laughing, not wanting to get Ash annoyed. It always ended painfully…

"Okay, so you and Jessie had been getting into a whole lot of arguments lately?" Misty asked. James nodded. "Well, did you try being nice to her?"

"Yeah. She called me a wimp and punched me."

"How about stern?"

"She punched me even harder."

"Did you give her a gift?"

"She punched me and told me to stop buying useless junk."

"Let's see…how about impressing her?"

"She punched me and told me to stop trying to show off."

Misty's brow furrowed in thought. "Did you try to talk to her?"

"She would punch me in the face and tell me to stop wasting her time."

Misty couldn't help but growl at this point. "Okay…did you try to stand up for yourself and be a man about it?"

"I tried, and was almost turned into a woman for it. And as for standing; I couldn't do that for a few days. At least she didn't punch me that time…"

"Good grief!" Misty cried, throwing her hands up in frustration, "She's worse than Ash's sense of direction!"

"Hey!" Ash yelled.

"You see what I mean? It's impossible. I always get turned into a punching bag in the end!" James shouted, punching at the ground in anger…only to cringe soon after. "Ow…shouldn't have done that…"

"Poor James…" Misty started rummaging through her head for any ideas that might help the troubled adult. Not even James deserved such punishment for that long of a time.

"_Hey, I think I have one idea that might help…_" Kasumi said.

'_I haven't heard from you for awhile. Where ya been?_' Misty asked telepathically.

"_I've…just had a lot on my mind, but don't worry about that. I've been listening to the conversation. According to him, he's been with Jessie for five years, been under such harsh punishment, and NOW he decides he can't take her attitude?_"

'_Yep, that seems to be the jist of it._'

"_So think about it…if he actually wanted to stay around her that long…and Jessie, being the brutal woman she is, actually stayed by his side for that long as well…then that could only mean one thing…_"

"Wait a minute…" Misty pondered aloud, catching everyone's attention. Instantly, her eyes widened in surprise. How could she not have figured it out sooner? "James, are you in love with Jessie?"

"What?" James jumped to his feet, turning scarlet. "Are you serious? Me and Jessie? Heaven's no!" After a moment, he sighed and then sat down. "At least, not anymore…"

"Misty? What are you getting at?" Ash asked, curious to see where this was going.

"Hmm…this is a difficult one, but there might be some hope for you two yet…" Misty said.

This caught James's attention. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. If only I knew the reason for Jessie's grumpiness, then I might be able to help."

"Hey guys, I think we've waited long enough. Let's think about it while we look for the exit and Brock." Ash stood up and dusted himself off, along with Misty. Forgetting he had the Pokédex on him until this moment, he used it to help lead everyone towards the correct direction, but not before he got chewed out by Misty for not using it sooner.

Mt. Moon – Brock and Jessie

Brock and Jessie had been trudging through the cave for the last hour. Being the guy he is, Brock had to carry Jessie on his back. Even though he was strong enough to carry her, he was getting a little tired. The fact Jessie would complain about every little thing didn't help either. "Alright, let's take a small break here…" Brock set Jessie carefully on the ground, leaning her against the wall.

"What, a big, strong man like you too weak to carry little ol' me around?"

'LITTLE?' Brock wanted to say, but decided to keep it to himself. Quite frankly, his patience was thinning out, fast. If he wanted to keep his cool any longer, he had to get away from Jessie. He may have been one to always fall for a girl, but she was a clear exception. Besides, something about her attitude was oddly familiar, and her named rung a bell. "Hey Jessie, I'm…gonna go and see what's ahead while you rest here. I'll be back in a little while…" Brock couldn't help but cringe. Really, he was lying and wanted to get away from her, but he truly hated lying, especially to a girl in trouble. He was about to leave when Jessie called out to him.

"Hey, Brock?" Jessie sighed before continuing. "Um…thanks for helping me and, well, sorry for acting like a brat. You've been nothing but a big help and I was a little ungrateful. I've been having a series of bad days back to back and recently had a fight with someone, so…yeah…"

Brock fought to keep himself from sighing. There was no way he could just leave her now. At least she apologized. He sat down next to her. "I suppose I could wait to check out the cave later…"

"Don't BS me. You were about to ditch me weren't you?"

"Err…um…w-what makes you say that? Of course I wouldn't ditch you. Heheheh…" Brock laughed nervously. He was starting to feel really bad now for even considering that.

"Don't worry about it. If you want to leave, then go ahead. It's only fair."

"No, no, no, I'm not going to leave ya. After all, you did apologize, not to mention you had a really bad day. It happens to all of us."

"Yeah, but as for me, it seems to happen all the time. And now, things are just worse than ever…"

"There, there…" Brock patted Jessie's back lightly, switching to his "big-brother" mode. "Tell me all about your bad day."

Jessie, feeling a little more comfortable, decided to share her pain with Brock. "It started when my part—err…friend and I were deciding which path to take inside this cave. You see, we've been friends for many years now and been through many things together, but due to, well, a horrible losing streak, I've been very, very, _very_ edgy. Even though I didn't mean for it, I would act a lot worse than you've seen so far." Brock cringed at the thought, feeling very sorry for the poor guy. "This has been going on for a few years and now we can barely go a day without some huge argument erupting. Today was probably one of the worst arguments and it was over deciding which direction to take in this stupid cave. To put it simply, we got lost, some things were said (and broken), and then we split apart. I'm sure he'll comeback in a day or so, but we'll probably just repeat the process all over again."

Brock noticed the dejected tone in her voice. It sounded like she was trying really hard to keep her pain bottled up. If anything, what she needed right now was someone to talk to. "Well, from what you've told me, I guess you and your friend had some rough times, you vented your anger out on him, and now things are spiraling down hill for the two of you."

"Yep. You hit it right on the mark. Huh, now that I think about it, I'm surprised he stuck with me for so long, given that I'm not exactly a gentle woman. You've seen that for yourself"

'I'll second that.' Brock agreed mentally. "Seems to me that he really likes you."

"Well that makes sense I suppose. You may not be able to tell because of the darkness, but I'm a very attractive woman. I guess it's not a real surprise that he would fall in…love…with…me…" Jessie faltered. She realized with a start what Brock said. "W-w-wait a minute! T-that's impossible! I mean…m-me? I've been so mean to him, so he wouldn't…but…he…no way!"

Brock grinned sneakily. Now things were getting interesting! "If I didn't know any better, I would think you like the idea of him liking you."

The bright tint of pink on Jessie's cheeks was almost able to illuminate the darkness. "I-I do not! I mean, he's such a…c-crybaby! T-t-there's no reason for me to l-l-l-like him! N-not one!"

"Uh huh…"

"I-I'm serious! He's such a loser, always whining and carrying on! I don't want someone like him!"

"Yea, sure you don't…"

"Q-quit it! I'm telling the truth here!"

"Who are you trying to convince, me, or yourself?" Brock inquired, enjoying the torment Jessie was going through.

Jessie fumbled over her words continuously, trying to throw an adequate excuse at him, but to no avail. Seeing there was no way out of it, she decided to surrender…but not completely. "…Okay, so maybe I _sorta_ like him, but just a little bit! Not anything crazy like love or anything! Nope, not at all!" She huffed, crossing her arms stubbornly.

Brock chuckled at Jessie's stubbornness. It rivaled Misty's. "You know, there's nothing wrong with that. No need to be so defensive about it." He started chuckling a little more with the extra thought that came to mind. "You know, you're super cute when you're nice."

Jessie's blush deepened at the compliment, a little embarrassed. "No I'm not. I'm not nice."

"Oh come on…! I'll bet there's a nice little girl inside there!" Brock playfully poked at Jessie's shoulder.

"Stop it! That's not funny!" Jessie giggled, swatting playfully at Brock. She hadn't felt this relaxed in years! Perhaps that little talk helped clear out her bottomless pit of anger. She was actually having fun! After a minute of playing and laughing, the two stopped, sighing in relief. "Thanks Brock, I really needed that. Now I feel great!"

"That's the spirit!" Brock cheered. "I hope when you meet your friend again, you two work things out."

"Thanks, I hope so too." There was a moment of peaceful silence, that is until Jessie broke it. "So…you promise not to tell anyone about…you know…everything?"

"Not a soul. Besides, it's not like I know the guy or anything. It would be impossible."

"Yeah, I doubt you know James anyway..."

Just then, something clicked in Brock's head. Now he just _knew_ there was something familiar about that. "Wait…did you say James?"

"Yeah, why, you don't know him, do you?" Jessie asked, raising an eyebrow.

Brock furrowed his brow in thought, trying to remember where he heard that thought. '_James…Jessie…Jessie and James…oh…crap!_' Brock almost had a heart attack at the realization. The person he was talking to was Jessie from Team Rocket! How could he have been so stupid to not notice that? "Ah…me, know James? N-no! That would be too much of a coincidence."

Yeah, like this wasn't any bigger of a coincidence…

Unfortunately for him, something also clicked in Jessie's head. "Hey…you said your name was Brock, right?"

Cursing his luck, Brock decided to play dumb. "Uh…Brock? Did I say that? I meant Chuck, yeah, that's it! Chuck!"

Jessie narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "No, I'm pretty sure you said Brock…" She could hear Brock crawling away from her slowly. "Brock…Brock…I know I've heard that name from somewhere…" She started crawling towards Brock, growing more and more suspicious. "…Wait a minute…" After a few more clicks in her head, she finally remembered who that name belonged to. "So you're the oldest twerp who hangs with Ash…"

Brock swallowed hard, realizing he had just been caught. "Ehehehe…surprise?"

Jessie's eyebrow twitched angrily. Not only did she allow herself to buddy up with the enemy, but told him her most treasured secret. "You know…" She said slowly, her temper rising slowly. "My foot's feeling better…"

…Uh oh. "Err…t-that's good…" Brock quivered, knowing he was about to get it.

"…I suppose I should thank you for helping me feel better…how does a head start sound?"

"No complaints here!" With that, Brock tore through the dark cave, soon followed by an enraged Jessie.

Mt. Moon – Ash, Misty, James and Meowth

Ash, Misty, James, Meowth and Pikachu, with the help of the Pokédex, finally found the right path and took it. As they ventured the cave, there were many other paths as well. Normally, the gang would've been lost long ago, but the Pokédex's shard detector was rather helpful in this case. The closer Ash got to the center of Mt. Moon, the more frequent the beeps were, indicating he was getting closer to the shard. Ash, being cautious, made sure to keep an eye on James and especially Meowth. He may've been friendly with them time to time, but they were still a rockets, a group Ash could never trust.

While walking, Ash couldn't help but wonder something. He knew there was only one person who could really answer it, and he had been very quiet lately. '_Hey, Satoshi, why is it you guys are called evil in the legends? What is it you guys did?_' He asked telepathically. Telepathy was something Ash couldn't comprehend completely. All he knew was that he just had to think and Satoshi would hear him. He just hoped Satoshi didn't hear _all_ of his thoughts.

Satoshi, still masking his presence, decided to inform Ash the best he could using telepathy. '_That is something I'm not 100 percent on. Unfortunately, my memories are still a bit scattered, I can only remember certain things if I see or hear it. Though, something about that has irked me somewhat. During my era, Lumina was split in five parts, so it could be assumed that we were labeled "evil" because we were loyal to our country and ours only. Though that makes me wonder…what did happen after we were sealed?_'

'_Maybe the guy who sealed you was the one to do such a thing?'_

'_That's something else that bothers me. I remember a good bit of that battle. All five of us were close to defeating him, but he used this sealing device to take our souls. If anything, he could've just destroyed this ball and be rid of us for good. Somehow, something tells me he didn't get the chance. This leads me to believe that he wasn't the one who labeled us as evil…but someone else entirely. It's all very confusing and I'd prefer not to waste time thinking on it._'

'_Yeah, I guess you're right._' Ash couldn't help but wonder one other thing. '_I remember carrying the GS ball long before, yet you never appeared or anything. Why is that?_'

'_That I think I can answer. With any door, it requires a "key" of some sort to open. What I can guess is that you've somehow managed to find a key and unlocked the sealing mechanism on the GS ball. Now, according to how I've seen it work, whenever the right person comes into contact with the ball, their corresponding ancestor merges with them. Maybe if I see the remaining two guardians, which would be the Fazura and Mizura guardian, I would regain many more memories…_'

'_Well, I hope you get all of your memories back Satoshi. I'll do what I can to help you out._'

'…_Thanks Ash…_'

"Hey, look ahead!" Misty pointed to the light at the end of the tunnel.

"Alright! It looks like we're almost at the center where the shard is! Let's hurry!" Ash cried in excitement, running ahead. Misty and Pikachu followed his lead shortly.

'Wait…shard? Is he talking about the same one the boss has been searching for?' James pondered.

"Hey James…" Meowth whispered, cueing him to listen. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"If you're talking about what Ash mentioned, then yeah. If it's the same one we've been looking for, then maybe we could steal it once the twerps find it."

"That's the ticket! Let's hurry up and catch up with them!" Meowth started ahead, but slowed to a stop when he noticed James not running with him. The Cat Scratch Pokémon could tell he was brooding over something. "Hey, are you coming or not?"

James was knocked out of his thoughts and brought back to the real world. "Huh? Oh, yeah."

Meowth sighed, having a good feeling what was on his mind. "Look…just forget about her for now. We're still rockets, and we got a job to do. And…I'm sure we'll see her eventually anyway, so just forget it and hurry already!" Though he sounded angry and annoyed, Meowth was only trying to help him get over Jessie. After all, they were friends regardless of past struggles, all three of them were.

James nodded, looking a little more determined than earlier. "Alright, let's hurry and get that shard!" As the two rockets ran ahead, James knew he could never follow Meowth's advice, no matter how much he probably should. There were some people you could never forget…

However, when James and Meowth were almost out of the long tunnel, they noticed something very wrong. Ash, Misty and Pikachu were lying on the ground, a look of pain and struggle on their faces. Worried, the two rockets ran towards the fallen heroes.

_ZAP!_

"ARGH!" Both James and Meowth were struck by simultaneous stun club attacks, forcing them on the ground next to Ash and Misty. When they looked up, they would've gasped with fright if they still had the ability. Around them were a large group of Magma grunts, all armed with stun clubs and tough looking fire Pokémon.

"Feh, I figured I would see you kids again, and I'm glad my sources were correct about you." One man said, approaching the paralyzed group of six. The Team Magma leader didn't have a hood like the grunts and administrators, but had a different style of clothing. He had a long coat that was half grey and half red stretching down to his knees, grey slacks and boots. He also had dark brown eyes and bright red hair. "It's been awhile, Ash Ketchum." The man sneered, crouching in front of the said child.

"Maxie…" Ash growled, clenching his fist.

Maxie smirked. "I'm glad you remembered. The last time we met was when I was attempting to revive Groudon. Unfortunately, our plans were foiled thanks to you kids…and you guys too!" Maxie pointed angrily at James and Meowth. "Don't think for a moment I've forgotten about you, though I do remember there being a third member to this Team Rocket you claim to be. And as for Ash," Maxie turned his attention to the raven haired trainer. "I remember you've traveled with three other people. Perhaps they realized your foolish ideals and ditched you, but that no longer matters at this moment. I've heard from my spies that you've acquired a nifty device that allows you to detect a special object, one that I've been looking for. I'll skip the minor details and get straight to the point: You have the key to not only helping us realize our goals, but make us truly invincible, and you're going to give it to me whether you like it or not!" Maxie stood up and started walking away. "Lock them up and be sure to strip them of any Pokéballs and items they may have. I want no mistakes!"

"Yes sir!" The grunts responded, approaching Ash and the rest. Things were not looking good…

Mt. Moon – Prison bay

A half hour later, Ash, Misty and James were locked up in a cage, their equipment and Pokémon relinquished from them. They were placed in a holding cell inside one of Mt. Moon's empty areas, a spot close to the center. The metal on the cages were pretty sturdy and there were two guards in front of the cage.

"Hey Ash," James whispered, trying not to alert the guards, "Why don't you do that one thingy you did back at Viridian City? You know, change your hair color and everything?"

"Ah, you're right!" Ash considered his words then gasped sharply. "Whoa…you're…right…that's something you don't hear everyday."

"Ha ha, very funny." James shot irritably.

Ash was about to perform the sync with Satoshi when the spirit called out to him. "_Hold on Ash, I wouldn't recommend such an option yet…_"

'_Why not?_' Ash inquired mentally.

"_Think about it. If Maxie finds out we've broken out of the jail cell, not only will we get swarmed by enemies and probably killed, but he might bail with our shard detector. Either way, we have to recover our equipment by stealthy means first. I'm still thinking of a possible escape plan. If only we had a way to unlock the gate…_"

Ash sulked a little. Satoshi had a point. "Well…that plan is out the window. I can't…err…use my techniques, otherwise I'll alert Maxie." He informed Misty and James. They had the same reaction Ash did to the news. "Come on, we've been through stuff worse than this,thanks to a certain group of trouble makers." Ash shot a knowing glance at James, who chuckled nervously in response. "Don't worry you guys, I'm sure if we work together on this, we can break free."

"I agree. Let's find a way to escape." Misty said, standing with him. The two stared at James, who was still sitting down.

"…What?"

"Come on James. You too." Ash invited, extending his hand.

The violet haired rocket considered it, but shook his head. "Nah, I'm not that brave. Just go ahead and do your thing, I'll just stay out of the way."

"The James I knew would never say something like that!" A female voice echoed, surprising everyone.

"Who's there?" One of the Magma guards shouted, looking around.

"Seviper, Poison Tail!"

"Crobat, Wing Attack!"

_SMACK!_

_SLASH!_

Both Magma guards were defeated before they could summon their Pokémon. The lock on the gate was struck by the Poison Tail attack, breaking it and opening the cage. Ash, Misty and James were free! Not only that, but Pikachu and Meowth were free too! Pikachu leapt into Ash's embrace, as did Meowth to James.

"Brock! Jessie!" Ash cried in surprise.

"Hey you guys!" Brock exclaimed, standing in front of the opened cell. "Sorry we took so long, but those goons had pretty tight security. Plus, we had to free the Clefairy imprisoned here. The good news is that they're helping out by wreaking havoc, so we have a chance to find and defeat Maxie before he can get away with the Pokédex."

"Wow! You really did all of that?" Ash asked.

Brock rubbed the back of his head bashfully. "Well, as much as I would like to take all the credit, a lot of it belongs to Jessie. She's actually quite skilled when it comes to sneaking into places and dispatching guards. I was just the extra firepower. Anyway, let's hurry up and get going!"

"Right!" Ash and Misty stood up and walked out of the prison. James was about to leave when Brock stopped him.

"Not so fast James! There's someone who would like to have a word with you. But first…" With quick hand movement, Brock snatched Meowth by the scruff of his neck.

"Hey, what are ya doing?" Meowth yelled, thrashing in Brock's grip. Brock restrained him and whispered in his ear. Instantly, his ears perked and the cat grinned. "Ooooh! Gotcha! Sorry Jimmy, but you're gonna hafta sit this one out for awhile!"

"Why? What's going on?" James asked.

"Gee James, I don't know, why don't you ask her?" Brock shoved Jessie in James's direction, grinning wickedly.

"Hey, watch it!" Jessie yelled.

"J-Jessie?" James stammered.

Jessie stared at the ground, shifting nervously. "Um…yeah. We need to talk…"

Misty gasped with delight. "Oh my gosh! Jessie's gonna—mmph!" She was silenced by Brock's hand.

"Shh! Let's give them a little privacy." Brock said quietly. "Okay Jessie, just like we talked about! We'll catch you two later!" With that, Ash, Brock, Misty and Meowth left the two alone, heading towards Maxie to recover Ash's Pokédex, leaving Jessie and James to themselves.

"Grr…that idiot…!" Jessie growled, glaring at the direction Brock darted off to. She wasn't ready for this, but it was too late. It was now or never. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calming her raging nerves.

James was clueless to what was going on. Why did Jessie seem so nervous? "Was there something you wanted to talk about?"

"Don't rush me idiot!" She snapped. In an instant, her expression changed from anger to apologetic. "No, wait. I…didn't mean that. Yes, there was something I wanted to talk to you about." Right then, her gaze went downward. "J-James…c-could you come here for a moment?"

"Come…closer?" James asked, swearing he misheard her.

Jessie nodded, the red in her cheeks brightening. "Yes. Come here…p-please…?"

If James wasn't surprised before, he surely was now. When did she ever say please? Also, when did her voice sound so…serene? It was definitely a nice change of tone. He complied with the request and took a few steps forward, standing about a foot away. "Like this?"

Jessie shook her head. "N-no…a little closer…" She gestured him to come ever closer with her hand. James hesitated, not sure what she had planned. "Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. Just come closer…"

"Um…o-okay." James did so and was now at most an inch away, slowly reddening. "I-is this close enough?"

"Y…yeah, it is." Summing up every bit of her courage, Jessie pulled James into a affectionate hug, causing James to tense up. "James, I know this isn't nearly enough to atone for the damage I've done to our friendship, but I wanted to show you that I'm sorry for how I've been. I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I wanted you to know that I'm truly sorry."

"Jessie…" Slowly, James returned the embrace, gently making Jessie's head lean on his shoulder. The years of built-up anger and frustration immediately faded as though it never existed, and the love the two had for each other years ago returned in full force. "Of course you deserve my forgiveness. This is more than enough."

"I'm glad…" The two stayed in the same position for many minutes, not wanting to leave their warmth. For a moment, there was nothing but comfortable silence. "…James?"

"…Yes Jessie?"

"…I…like this. Do you think we could do this more often?"

"I would like that." James answered, smiling softly. He could really get used to this…

Mt. Moon – Ash, Misty, Brock and Meowth

The quartet managed to plow through the scattered Team Magma forces as the angry Clefairy and Clefables attacked, causing great discord. There were many paths Maxie could take in order to escape. Ash, Misty and Brock all took separate paths in order to hunt down the Team Magma leader while Meowth waited patiently for Jessie and James.

Ash, along with Pikachu on his shoulder, tore through the cavern tunnels. While running, two Magma grunts stood in front of him, protecting the passageway. "We're not going to let you get through without a fight kid!" One of the grunts barked, brandishing his stun club.

"Hmph, we'll see about that! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu complied and lunged at one of the Magma grunts. "Pika…CHU!"

_ZAP!_

"GAH!" The Magma grunt was instantly paralyzed from the strong bolt of electricity. The second grunt raised his stun club to strike Pikachu, but never got the chance.

_SMACK!_

Ash smashed his fist across the grunt's face, knocking him out in one hit. He took a brief moment to glance at his fist, a little surprised. Was it him, or has he gotten stronger lately? "Pika! Pikachu!" Pikachu cried, reminding Ash about Maxie.

"Huh? Oh, right, let's go!" Ash continued his run down the tunnel, finding two more grunts and Maxie himself minutes later.

Maxie seemed surprised. "I should've expected nothing less from a brat like you! Guards, get him!"

"Right!" The two grunts summoned one Pokémon each, a Mightyena and a Golbat.

"A double battle huh? I'm game! Let's go Grovyle!" Ash called, summoning the Wood Gecko Pokémon.

"Grovyle!" The grass Pokémon cried, prepping his arm leaf blades for combat. Pikachu took a fighting stance next to Grovyle, his cheeks sparking with high voltage.

"Heh, let's see if you can take on my two personal guards. If you can beat them, then I'll gladly battle you. But first…" Maxie snapped his fingers. As if on cue, Pokémon battle music started playing in the background.

(Battle! Team Aqua/Magma– Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire)

Ash couldn't help but sweat-drop, as did his Pokémon. "All this battle music stuff gets weirder and weirder…"

"Meh, you get used to it." One of the grunts shrugged. "Anyway, enough fooling around, it's time to battle! Mightyena, use Sand-Attack!"

The Bite Pokémon turned around and used his back legs to kick dirt at Grovyle and Pikachu, blinding them with a flurry of dust. The second Magma battler was prepared with his own debilitating attacks. "Golbat, use Screech!" The Bat Pokémon let loose a sharp sound, lowering Pikachu and Grovyle's defenses heavily. Both of Ash's Pokémon covered their ears and howled in agony, being pounded on both hearing and sight senses.

Ash growled at the two Magma grunt's teamwork. They were good, but Ash didn't get this far without knowing a few tricks. "Pikachu, hurry and use Dig! Grovyle, spin like a tornado to blow the dust away!"

Pikachu, who barely heard Ash's call, managed to successfully burrow underground, avoiding Golbat's Screech attack. Grovyle also heard Ash's command and started spinning rapidly. The move managed to blow the dust away, but Grovyle didn't expect Mightyena to go at him with a Tackle attack to the stomach, knocking him back. Grovyle instinctively countered with a Leaf Blade attack, slashing Mightyena's face. The wolf howled and jumped back, trying to shake off the pain. "Golbat, use Wing Attack on that Grovyle!" The Magma guard shouted, pointing to the Grass-type. The Poison/Flying-type Pokémon gave out a shrill cry as it lunged towards Grovyle.

Ash narrowed his eyes in a calculating manner. He had to time it just right… "Grovlye, jump back on my mark…" Grovyle complied and prepared to jump back as the bat flew at high-speed. "…NOW!" Ash's Pokémon jumped back immediately, the bat still locked onto its target. "Pikachu, Zap Cannon!" Right under Golbat, the ground started to erupted with overflowing electrical energy.

_**ZAP!**_

Golbat screeched as it received a direct hit from the Zap Cannon and was slammed against the ceiling by the ball of electricity. Pikachu jumped from the hole and smacked Golbat with an Iron Tail strike, sending it flying towards its trainer. Golbat instantly fainted. "Ah! Golbat!" The Magma grunt gasped. Being that was his only Pokémon, he immediately lost. It was now up to his partner.

"Grovyle, Leaf Blade!" Ash commanded.

_SLASH!_

Mightyena received critical damage from the attack and fainted. The trainer owning the Dark-type snarled as he recalled his fainted Pokémon. Since that was also his final Pokémon, he was defeated as well. Maxie growled, not expecting Ash to defeat the two guards on his own. "Fine, looks like you've passed the test. Now I will battle you. It's time to settle this!" After ordering the two defeated guards to retreat, Maxie took the stage. "I've always wanted to crush you in a Pokémon battle. Now I have that chance. I won't hold back."

"That makes two of us!" Ash recalled Grovyle, letting Pikachu do the battling against the Team Magma leader.

"Let's make this interesting, shall we?" Maxie took out a Pokéball and enlarged it, preparing to summon the creature inside. "This will be a one-on-one match. If I win, you let me go with the Pokédex. However, if you win, I'll give it back to you. How about it?"

Ash didn't need more than a second to decide. "I'll take your challenge! Pikachu, are ya up for it?"

"Pika!" Pikachu was pumped, ready to battle.

"So be it! Go, Camerupt!" Maxie called, summon a large, 6 foot orange Pokémon with three volcano-like humps on its back and three blue oval rings on each side. The Eruption Pokémon roared as it stomped on the ground, creating a tremor.

"Whoa!" Ash stumbled from the small-scale earthquake, surprised with the Camerupt's power. He had to be careful, especially since the Pokémon was part Ground-type, immune to electrical attacks. Ash still had a few attacks he could use besides electric ones. "I'm not afraid. Bring it on!"

Maxie grinned with anticipation. "I plan to, but first…" He snapped his fingers, and once again, battle music started to play.

(Battle! Aqua/Magma team leader – Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire)

"…Are you going to do that with _every_ battle?" Ash exasperated, getting a little annoyed.

Maxie scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Well…Yeah."

Ash and Pikachu face-faulted. Talk about ridiculous! "Fine, let's just battle!"

"You asked for it! Camerupt, let's start this off with Rock Slide!" Maxie commanded. Camerupt lifted its thick hooves and stomped on the ground very hard, creating a powerful shockwave coursing through the tunnel. Many rocks started raining on Pikachu from the ceiling.

"Pikachu, dodge using Agility!" Ash called. Pikachu zipped past the falling rocks with blinding speed, dashing towards the Fire/Ground-type. "Alright, when in range, use Iron Tail!" Pikachu, still dashing around, stiffen the muscles in his tail, making it harder than steel.

"Camerupt, let's take out that Pikachu before it gets close! Use Earthquake!"

"Crap!" Ash gasped. Camerupt raised its hooves once more, preparing to initiate a powerful Ground-type attack. "Pikachu, hurry and run along the wall to dodge that Earthquake attack!" Pikachu hurriedly followed Ash's directions and leapt onto the wall, running along it. When Camerupt pressed onto the ground, the tunnel shook violently and the ground ruptured, distorting the terrain. Though Pikachu was running along the wall, the attack was powerful enough to throw him off the wall and onto the ground, receiving some damage from the attack. Pikachu was shaken, but luckily didn't receive the full brunt of the attack. "Keep going and use Iron Tail! Don't let up!" Pikachu continued to dash towards Camerupt.

'Hmm…I can't let him get too close to Camerupt, though if he does, I can just use my secret weapon. I need to buy sometime in order to escape. …Oh, I know!' Maxie eyed the narrow terrain and grinned sinisterly. "Camerupt, use Hyper Beam at full power!" Camerupt opened its mouth, conjuring massive amounts of energy…

Ash furrowed his brow in thought. 'Is there enough time to reach it before Camerupt uses Hyper Beam? Maybe, but I definitely can't take out Camerupt before that attack goes off! Wait a minute…!' His eyes widened in horror. 'That attack…it would hit me too! I can't survive a Hyper Beam! I need to stop that Camerupt!' He knew performing Hyper Beam took some time to fully charge, leaving him with a small window of opportunity. Electric attacks won't work, so that cut Pikachu's power by a significant amount. Quick attack could work, but there was a chance it wouldn't be strong enough to knock Camerupt off balance, given the Pokémon weighed nearly 500 pounds. Headbutt and Tackle wouldn't do too much either, but maybe… "Pikachu, use Iron Tail on Camerupt's chin! Knock off its aim!"

Pikachu darted along the ground and was nearing Camerupt quickly. At this rate, it looked like Pikachu would make it…if only Maxie didn't think ahead. "Quick, cancel and use Double Team!" Maxie commanded, smirking. Camerupt immediately stopped charging and just as quickly created multiple images of itself, stopping Pikachu in his tracks.

"What?" Ash stumbled back, surprised. How was it something as heavy as Camerupt could use Double Team?

"Kid, I'm not the leader of Team Magma for nothing. I'm well aware of your Pikachu's speed and choice of attacks, and I have ways to counter each of them! Camerupt, Eruption!" At its trainer's command, the humps on Camerupt's back exploded with molten lava, lobbing them at Pikachu. Due to Camerupt's Double Team, Pikachu couldn't tell which was real and ended up getting a direct hit from the lava. Eruption was an attack where if the user was at full strength, it would do immense damage. Since Camerupt was healthy at the beginning of the battle and received no damage so far, the damage to Pikachu was powerful!

"Pikachu!" Ash cried, watching his Pokémon get pummeled by the lava erupting from Camerupt's back. "Hurry and use Dig! Get away from the lava!" And Pikachu did just that, slimly avoiding getting serious burns from the lava.

"Hah, you idiot! Don't you know if a Pokémon uses Dig, the damage inflicted by Earthquake is doubled? And given that your electric rat is weak against Ground attacks, this match is already won! Camerupt, use Earthquake and finish off Pikachu!" Camerupt did as commanded and created a powerful tremor in the earth, shaking up the very tunnel. Ash struggled to stay on his feet. "Hah, now your Pikachu is crushed within the earth! Any last words before I make my escape?"

Ash chuckled ominously, making Maxie worry. "Yeah, two: IRON TAIL!" Suddenly, Camerupt felt a small rock fall on top of his head. When the Eruption Pokémon and Maxie glanced upward, their eyes widened in terror. Pikachu was right above Camerupt's head!

_SMASH!_

Camerupt gave a loud of pain, suffering from a splitting headache. The attack did critical damage and Camerupt was left in a daze. "No, Camerupt!" Maxie cried.

"Alright Pikachu, let's give that Camerupt another Iron Tail! Full power!" Ash shouted. Pikachu stiffened his tail again and whipped harshly at Camerupt's chin.

_SMACK!_

With that attack, Camerupt fell to the ground, quickly loosing consciousness from the powerful strikes on the head and chin. Maxie growled with fury. He wasn't going to be beaten so easily! "Camerupt, hurry and use Hyper Beam! Use the reserves you've stored up from the previous one!"

"What the—" Ash couldn't say anything more as Camerupt opened its mouth and shot a powerful blast of energy at Pikachu, sending him flying!

"PIKAAAA!" Pikachu cried, getting a direct hit.

"Pikachu!" Ash dashed and leapt for Pikachu, catching him just in time. "Hey, Pikachu! Are you okay?"

"Pi…kapi…" Pikachu muttered, fainting from pain afterwards.

"Hmph, what an unexpected turn of events…" Maxie recalled his defeated Camerupt, clipping the Pokéball on his belt. "I suppose I'll make my leave then. Farewell!" He started dashing away.

"Hey, get back here!" Ash yelled. Pikachu in his arms, he ran after the Team Magma leader. When he arrived, he saw Maxie escaping in a hot air balloon shaped like Groudon's head. "Give back my Pokédex!"

"I don't think so!" Maxie sneered, flashing the Pokédex tauntingly. "Not only did I acquire two shards of the Final Destiny from the Clefairy, but a locator to boot! With this, my dreams will soon be—what the?" Maxie gazed upward in surprise.

Ash was just as surprised. "It's…Team Rocket?"

Indeed, it was Jessie, James and Meowth, all piloting their signature Meowth balloon. "Seviper, use Poison Sting!" Jessie commanded.

"You too Cacnea!" James called. The two said Pokémon shot a flurry of thin poison needles at the balloon. Many of them pierced the rubber elastic, puncturing it and causing the balloon to combust.

"AH! NOOOO!" Two shards of the Final Destiny and the Pokédex flew out of Maxie's hands, as well as his chance of victory. Just as Team Rocket always did, Maxie was sent blasting off, disappearing in the sky in a twinkle of light. James managed to catch the flying items as they flew at him.

"Hey, would ya look at that. We actually sent someone else blasting off for once. Heh, no wonder the twerp always like to do that to us!" James said, feeling proud of their small feat.

"Not only that, but we actually got something out of it for once!" Meowth gestured the two shards and Pokédex/locator.

"Hey, Team Rocket!" Ash yelled, getting their attention. "Think you could give back my Pokédex? Um…please?" The minute he actually thought about his question, he immediately felt stupid. He was asking Team Rocket, the same band of thieves he had sent blasting off time and time again, if he could get a valuable object from them, with no means of stopping them.

Yeah…brilliant one Ash…

The three rockets began considering what they should do. They could easily just fly away with the shards and Pokédex, give them to the boss and be ensured a high ranking position for their achievements. But then again…had he not helped them out earlier today, Jessie and James would not have patched things up so well. There was only one reasonable way to do this.

"Hey Ash, catch!" James yelled, tossing the Pokédex back to Ash. Surprised beyond belief, Ash almost missed catching the ever-so-valuable Pokédex. "Consider that as payment for helping us out today. In return, this pays back the debt we owe you, so now we're even! The next time we meet, it'll be back to basics."

Ash smiled brightly. "Yeah, I gotcha. Thanks a lot you guys!" He waved happily at the fleeting trio. "I'll give you guys a break with the blasting off today. You deserve it!"

James flashed Ash a thumbs up. Afterwards, he turned to Jessie and Meowth. "Let's get going. The minute the other two twerps find us, we'll probably be sent blasting off."

"Sounds good to me!" Jessie powered up the engine, making their getaway.

As Ash watched Team Rocket escape from sight, Misty and Brock raced to catch up with Ash. "Hey, did you find Maxie?" Misty asked, panting from all the running.

"Yep. See for yourself!" Ash flashed the Pokédex, causing his two friends to sigh in relief. "Though…I didn't get the two shards of the Final Destiny…"

"What? Aw man…" Brock shook his head in disappointment. "This means the enemy now has possession of the shards. This journey is getting more difficult by the second!"

Ash shrugged. "I suppose so, but I guess this also means we'll be traveling together for a little while longer. That ain't bad if you guys are with me."

Misty blushed, trying hard to keep herself from saying 'Aww…' Instead, she went for the usual response. "Yeah, you're right, though this means we'll have to put up with you for a little while longer as well." Misty giggled as she started back on the right path out of Mt. Moon.

"Hey, that wasn't nice!" Ash yelled, chasing after Misty. Brock couldn't help but chuckle at their antics as he chased after them. He wouldn't mind traveling with them for a good while. After finally finding the correct path, Ash, Misty and Brock headed off towards their next stop, Misty's hometown of Cerulean City!

Somewhere on Route 4

Seeing as they finally made some success, James, Jessie and Meowth all found a vid-phone and called Giovanni to tell him of their findings. Giovanni, figuring it was them, answered the call rather roughly. "What is it THIS time, another failure?"

"Nope! Actually, we got a surprise for you!" Jessie, the one who called, flashed the two Final Destiny shards at Giovanni. Safe to say, Giovanni was rightfully astonished.

"What…but…how…YOU three managed to find not one, but TWO shards of the Final Destiny?" Giovanni blinked, believing this was some cruel hallucination.

"It's the real deal! We managed to get it for you, and don't forget what you said: The _day you three succeed in anything, you'll be immediately promoted!_" Meowth pointed out.

Giovanni barely resisted the urge to slam his head on his expensive wooden desk. Never did he expect his insults to be taken seriously, or for it to turn out to backfire. However, he was still the boss of Team Rocket and did what he had to do. "…Fine…you three report to me with the shards immediately. We'll talk more about your promotion in person. That is all." Giovanni hung up the phone, feeling rather foolish he ever promised such a thing.

The trio rockets continued to stare blankly at the empty screen, their faces frozen with shock. After years of struggling, they're finally going to get promoted. "YAHOO!" All three shouted in unison. In a fit of glee, James lifted Jessie and Meowth in a hug, spinning them around.

"We finally did it guys! We're gonna get promoted!" James cheered.

"From rags to riches! Big time money, here we come!" Jessie squealed with delight.

"It's about time I'm recognized as the top cat around here!" Meowth said. After some more spinning, James stopped twirling his two partners, gently placing them down. Meowth managed to slide down from James's embrace, but Jessie and James continued to laugh, oblivious to their current position…though Meowth caught on a few moments later. "I see you two found a nice way to celebrate."

James stopped laughing and glanced at the cat Pokémon. "What do you mean Meowth?"

"Err…J-James? Look forward…" Jessie said with a bright tint of pink on her cheeks. James did as suggested, only to turn red in the face as well. Not only was he still holding her, but their faces were very close, practically touching. The two were speechless and frozen, a feeling of both pleasure and embarrassment enveloping the two.

"Well?" Meowth tapped his foot on the ground impatiently. "Go on and make-out already! We ain't got all day!" That did the trick, because Jessie and James both shot away from each other. Their faces darkened with redness.

"MEOWTH!" The two yelled, now red with anger.

"Just wait until everybody hears this!" With that, Meowth darted off towards Team Rocket's main HQ, a still-red-in-the-face Jessie and James hunting the cat down.

"GET BACK HERE!" They yelled. Even though it was embarrassing to be caught in such a position, they were smiling on the inside.

'Maybe someday…' The two thought simultaneously.

* * *

And that's the end of Chapter 11. You guys better be glad for this one, because it took me nearly a month to write this! Stupid writer's block! Anyway, the next chapter is very promising, and one I've been waiting to write for awhile, so I hope to catch you guys later! You don't want to miss the next one! Please review and let me know what you thought of the Jessie/James pairing. Did they seem out of character to you? 

Anyway, prepare for some coolness next time on The Legend of Final Destiny: Fateful Gathering!


	12. Growing stronger, growing apart

**_Chapter 12 –_** **_Growing stronger, growing apart_**

Cerulean City

Ash, Misty and Brock arrived in Cerulean City over a half an hour ago, heading towards Misty's house to stay for the night. Upon entering the gym, the gang was met with three very similar, familiar, and pretty faces. The three girls had blue, pink, and blonde hair respectively and wore matching bathing suits. Brock, who was always a huge fan for pretty girls in bathing suits, was quick to make his declaration of love for them. Fortunately, Misty didn't lose her touch when it came to stopping Brock's flirtatious behavior. After making small talk, the three sensational sisters decided to let Ash, Brock, and Misty know about their plans for the gym. Apparently, the people of Cerulean City demanded something new from the three sisters besides swimming shows and plays. They wanted action, competition, and excitement. After much deliberation, Daisy, the eldest blonde sister, found something which might appeal to the public, something which has never been done before in Cerulean City.

"A Martial Arts Tournament?" Ash, Misty and Brock inquired simultaneously.

"Right! The idea seemed, like, so perfect at the time. It's, like, something all of our fans can enjoy." Daisy said with a glimmer of excitement in her eyes.

"Just the idea of so many people coming to see some fancy action and competitors fighting for the grand prize is, like, totally awesome!" Violet, the second eldest blue haired sister quipped.

"Yeah, and we'll also get to see a whole bunch of hot guys getting all sweaty fighting each other!" Lily, the second youngest pink haired sister, cheered excitedly. She paused for a moment, noticing the odd looks she was getting. "…What?"

"Ahem!" Daisy coughed, getting everyone's attention, "Anyway, I was hoping if maybe you guys could, like, join the fun! We need more people in order to start the tournament, and it would be great if all you guys could join."

"Hmm…well, even though it sounds fun, we don't have the time for stuff like that. We've got to finish our search for some crystal shards." Ash said.

Daisy placed her finger on her chin thoughtfully. "Shard? Come to think of it, we found something like that earlier during our vacation. Let's see…aha!" She pulled out a small rainbow fragment from her purse and showed it to Ash.

"Wait a minute, isn't that…it is!" Ash gasped with a start. It was a shard of the Final Destiny!

"I see, so you've been looking for this thing?" Daisy asked. Ash nodded. "Well, if it's important, then I guess I can give it to you." She extended the shard piece to Ash, but just before the boy could grab it, the sensational sister pulled it away. "Under one condition! You must enter our tournament and make it up to at least top 4."

"Top 4? Why only that?" Ash asked.

"I ask because there might be some really strong competition, and I can't expect you to defeat everyone in the tournament. I can only hope you will do well enough to make it to the top 4. It shouldn't be too hard since word of the tournament has barely reached outside Cerulean City. All you need to do is put some effort into it and you'll do good. So how about it? Enter the tournament, make it to top 4, then you'll score this lovely crystal."

Ash had to contemplate on the matter with Misty and Brock, since they would have to enter too. They couldn't miss out on a chance of a shard, so it didn't seem like they had a real choice. Also, they could further improve their strengths incase of more powerful threats in the future. It was decided. "Alright, we'll do it." Ash announced.

"Sounds good! I'll go ahead and set up the registration for you guys" Daisy left for her private office. The beige colored room was rather messy due the lack of people actually taking the time to organize the office. Papers and folders were strewn across the wooden desk and white carpeted floor. There were two windows with pink shades, a supply closet, and a few scattered cabinets.

It was there a man leaned against the wall, smiling at Daisy in gratitude. "I appreciate you doing this, honestly."

"No, no, I should be the one thanking you. If it wasn't for you, our gym would've been bankrupted. Besides, it was you who gave me the idea for a tournament, and it turned out to be a huge attraction. Oh yeah, you were right about this crystal thingy. Ash was looking for this." Daisy tossed the man the Final Destiny fragment. The stranger caught it single handedly and placed it into his pocket.

"Do you plan on fulfilling my part of the bargain?"

"Of course! You will be entered the tournament. But I wonder, why do you want Ash to enter so badly? Do you know him or something?"

The man grinned widely. "Heh, you would be surprised. Anyway, I have to go soon to meet a couple of people. There's something I want you to do for me though…"

In the living room, Ash, Misty and Brock were busy talking to Violet and Lily when Daisy walked out of the office with a confused look on her face. Ash noticed this. "Oh, hi Daisy. Is something bothering you?"

"Huh? Oh, not really. It's just something strange I was requested to do. Ash, I was told to give you a message from someone who says he was an old friend of yours." Daisy informed.

Ash blinked. "An old friend of mine? What's the message?"

"Um…let's see…it was something like 'If you want your shards, hat and dignity back, you must defeat me in the tournament six days from now'. Also, he said his name was Soma."

Ash shot from his chair in an uproar. Brock and Misty had shocked looks on their faces. "SOMA?"

Daisy was taken aback by Ash's shouting. "I guess you two know each other. That also explains why you don't have your hat."

"Yeah…I did find that kind of strange. It looks weird seeing him without his hat." Violet commented.

Satoshi instantly knew what Soma was up to. He glanced over at Takeshi, who gave him a nod which confirmed his suspicions. _"Ash, Soma is obviously challenging us to a rematch."_ A grin graced Satoshi's lips. _"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"_

"_Definitely."_ Ash answered telepathically. He directed his attention to the sensational sisters. "So the tournament is in six days, right?"

"Yeah. This Sunday." Daisy answered.

Ash slapped his fist together. "Good. I can get some training in and then kick that guy's butt in the tournament!"

"_Training…"_ That was something Satoshi had considered ever since their first battle with Soma. Though his memory was still incomplete, he knew there were many Viziers as strong as Soma, a few of which who were stronger than Soma. If Ash was to stand a chance against them, he would need to boost his own strengths and learn how to properly fight. So far, Satoshi hadn't thought about teaching Ash his ways. However, with the new threats rapidly approaching, it was time to take off the kid gloves. Since there was only five days of actual training that could be done, wasting time wasn't an option. _"Ash, could you find a room where all three of us could talk privately?"_

"_Uh…sure."_ Ash wasn't sure what the spirit was planning, but it might've been important. "Um, Daisy? Is there a room where Brock, Misty and I can talk for a minute?"

"Sure. Actually, we should have a spare room which we've just finished fixing up, so you can go ahead and get comfortable there."

"Thanks a lot!" Ash went with his two friends towards the said guest room, which was on the second floor.

Cerulean Gym – Guest Room

It was a simple room with walls painted with blue wave patterns. The only objects in the room were two beds, a brown chair and dresser. Ash and Misty sat on one bed while Brock took the other and dropped their backpacks on the floor. After making sure the door was closed, Ash proceeded to talk with his spirit. "Alright Satoshi, so what did you want to talk with us about?"

Satoshi's spirit was soon visible to everyone, followed by Takeshi and Kasumi's spirit. _"It's about the tournament. So far, I haven't taught you much as far as combat techniques and battle tactics. During our journey so far, we've encountered very powerful foes. Some battles we've won, one we've lost. Whether you would like to believe it or not, there will be many enemies we will face who are indeed as strong as Soma. There will be a few who are ever stronger and more lethal. Though we've been lucky, our luck is bound to run out. This is where my idea comes in."_

"_I think I have an idea of what you're trying to get at Satoshi."_ Takeshi said, sitting on the bed next to Brock.

"_Yeah. I think it's time for some serious combat training. We each have our different styles and beliefs, so I feel it would be best if we all trained separately from each other."_

"I disagree." Misty argued immediately, "I mean, sure our styles may be different, but training separately wouldn't yield any more of a benefit than working together. If we work together, we could grow to learn how to flow as one group."

"_I'm not saying for the entire journey we work separately. It will be just for this tournament and perhaps a few instances in the future. I'll admit, you do have a point. Training together will be beneficial for teamwork. But your plan won't help for the upcoming tournament."_

"And why not?" Misty demanded, not liking Satoshi's plan.

"_Because with most tournaments, they are one-on-one matches. Where will your teamwork be then? Hm?"_

"I…" Misty faltered a little, unsure of how to respond. Satoshi had a point. "I get what you mean Satoshi, but—"

"_No buts Misty!"_ Satoshi interrupted roughly, surprising everyone. _"For this tournament, we need to work on our own strengths rather than teamwork. Have you already forgotten what happened in our first battle against Soma? What happened to all of your 'teamwork' when Soma mopped the floor with us? He took us all down one by one!"_

"Yeah, I know, but—"

"_Also, do you remember almost getting Ash killed because of your recklessness? I still remembered the look of fear in your eyes! Your weakness and hesitation nearly killed him! You know why? It's because as of this moment, you are weak!"_ Misty was stunned by Satoshi's comment, but had no time to make a comeback because Satoshi wasn't finished. _"Had you been a little stronger, such a scenario wouldn't have happened! You can go on and on about teamwork and working together, but if you are a weak little crybaby, the only thing you will do is drag all of us down, and possibly be the death of us all!"_ Misty couldn't say anything. Satoshi's words were harsh, but proved a point. She nearly killed Ash because of her hesitation, because she was weak. _"And furthermore…"_

"_THAT'S ENOUGH SATOSHI!"_ Kasumi interrupted sharply. _"Have you forgotten they're only children? You expect them to know so much when you barely know anything yourself!"_

Satoshi shot a dark glare at the Raikeizian. _"I wasn't talking to you—"_

"_But I'm talking to you, so shut up and listen! They aren't seasoned warriors Satoshi. They're children. They had their own lives until we merged with them. If I was able to, I wouldn't drag them into this mess. Just because they hesitate or lose a battle doesn't give you the right to yell at them as if they did something wrong. They did their best, and quite honestly, I'm proud of them. They continue to grow stronger with each battle, yet you can't see that. As a matter of fact, nothing ever satisfies you! If someone does one thing wrong, you attack them for no reason!"_

"_I'm not attacking them. I'm telling them the truth!"_

"_That's not the truth! How dare you call Misty weak? If anything, she is exceptionally strong and brave! She will not drag us down! If anything, the only thing that will drag us down is your radical beliefs! Tch, that's something to be expected from a forsaken one."_ Kasumi spat the last statement so venomously it cut through Satoshi like a knife. Takeshi winced at the insult, knowing how badly it would sting Satoshi.

Satoshi had a shocked look on his face at first, but it quickly changed to one of intense fury. _"I should've expected this from you…you're always like this! Stop with the BS and get real! Misty is a weakling and needs to build up her own strengths before she talks about any teamwork!"_

"_Why don't you shut the hell up and understand that no one's perfect! People make mistakes! They make mistakes and learn from them, just like you and I!"_

"_THE ONLY MISTAKE I MADE WAS FALLING IN LOVE WITH YOU!"_ Just as those words erupted from Satoshi's mouth, he clamped his own mouth shut, his eyes wide. The room suddenly grew quiet and tense. The spirit hosts grew wide eyed; their jaws hanging open in shock. Takeshi shook his head sadly, knowing that was the straw that broke the Numel's back. _"K…Kasumi, I—"_

"_You've said enough Satoshi. You made your point. I understood that since the beginning…"_ Kasumi's hostile composure quickly dissipated, replaced by what was a mixture of hurt and grief. _"I-I'm going to rest. Tomorrow promises to be a busy day. Good night…"_ Kasumi faded from sight, retreating to her sanctuary inside Misty's consciousness.

Satoshi's hand reached out the Kasumi slightly, but soon lowered, knowing she wasn't going to come out any time soon. His eyes met Misty's, which had a combination of confusion, shock, and anger in them. He slowly turned away, feeling shame and anguish creep upon him. _"Misty…I…a-apologize for my harsh words. Though there's room for improvement, you are not weak…not at all…"_ He followed Kasumi's example and retreated inside Ash's consciousness.

Silence engulfed the room. Ash's previous excitement for the upcoming tournament changed to worry. He never knew too much about Satoshi and the spirits, but judging by Satoshi's fierce statement and the spirits reaction, there was definitely something more to them, much more than he initially realized. He could tell Satoshi didn't mean what he said, but he knew Kasumi thought otherwise. The only spirit left was Takeshi, and he seemed to understand the situation very well. A little too well… "…Takeshi?" Ash called with a soft tone. "I know it's none of my business, but could you explain what just happened?"

For the first time, Ash noticed Takeshi's serious expression. It was something about it which clearly stated something very bad and severe just occurred. _"That is something you should ask them. It's not my place to say. Let's just say the story does not have a happy ending."_

"Oh…" Was the only thing Ash could say. There were so many questions he had. One of them he felt he could ask Takeshi. "Kasumi said something about Satoshi being a forsaken one. What did she mean by that?"

Takeshi had a sad look on his face at the thought of it. Satoshi had every right to get angry at Kasumi for that remark. It was truly harsh. _"That…is a term we use for people who are from Kuroza, Satoshi's country. Satoshi and his country's base element is darkness. Darkness is a mysterious and unique element, something which few people understand completely. Those that don't understand it fear it. Fear turns to hate, and in the end, everyone starts calling it 'evil' and 'demonic'. When people are born, they are born with a base element. There are five main elements: Fire, Water, Nature, Light, and Darkness. Darkness is the least understood element, and because of that, it is considered to be the most dangerous. Sadly, those who are born with Darkness as a base element are automatically labeled as forsaken ones, or evil infidels. Because of this belief, most infants don't live to see day two. This is because when it is discovered they are forsaken ones…they are often killed immediately…"_

"Oh my god…" Misty gasped, horrified. "That's so cruel…"

"_That's not even the worst of it. At one point, a major tragedy took place which forever changed the fate of Lumina: The Grand Massacre, or a more correct name, the Kurozian Massacre. During the early period of the Luminarian war, something or someone started a massive witch-hunt campaign targeting all forsaken ones. Those who were found were either killed immediately, sent into concentration camps, tortured for sick and twisted pleasures, or setup for public executions, and that was on the daily, sometimes hourly, basis. Within that year, millions of people died. Because forsaken ones were so feared, sometimes, people killed those who weren't even forsaken ones, just because they either tried to help them or because people thought they were one of them. I don't remembered how it ended exactly, but by the end of the massacre, all of the forsaken ones created their own country and gave their country a new name: Kuroza. It was a tough struggle, but Kurozians had quickly grown enough to stand up to any country single-handedly. _

_When I was alive, I remembered there were only two countries who strongly believed that Kurozians were pure evil: Raikeiza and Terroga. Even though my country thought they were nothing but evil, me and a few others didn't believe so. What I believe is that the power you are born with doesn't define whether you are good or bad, but it is what you do with that power that matters."_

"What you do with your power…" Ash whispered to himself. He stared into his palm, feeling dark energy emanating from it. It was Satoshi's power, the power of darkness. It was before Ash thought darkness was power only villains and evil doers had. But now…he knew such wasn't the case. It was just coincidence. He knew what he wanted to do with that power. It wasn't to destroy, but to save. The power of darkness…it was certainly mysterious, and Ash barely understood any of it. He didn't understand anything relating to spirits, synching, powers, abilities, and other such things. "The power…right now, I'm using Satoshi's power of darkness…it feels different from what I first thought it would…."

Takeshi seemed surprised at this. _"What do you mean?"_

"Whenever I thought of the word dark, it would think cold, lonely, and scary. But, whenever I use Satoshi's power…it feels like it's a veil of armor protecting me. I don't feel cold and I know I'm not lonely. That's how I know darkness is not evil. When I first met Satoshi and realized he was a darkness guardian, I was honestly a little afraid. I believed darkness was something dangerous. But now, I understand it a little more. It's not something to fear, it's something to understand. You never know what lies in the darkness unless you go forward, and that's what I'll do. I'll understand this power and use it to do the right thing."

Takeshi nodded in approval. _"Bravo Ash, that's exactly what I was hoping to hear. I'm glad there are still people like you around. It makes the world a better place to live."_

"Thanks Takeshi." Ash wanted to be happy about Takeshi's compliment, but something was still worrying him. Misty, who knew Ash very well, could easily tell.

"Are you worried about Satoshi?" Misty asked. Ash nodded silently. It was understandable. She was worried about Kasumi. Kasumi took Satoshi's words very hard, and those types of wounds were tough to heal. Misty had an idea though. She wouldn't like it, but it was a good way to start helping the problem resolve and get to know Kasumi more. "Um…Ash? About Satoshi's advice to train separately…I think…we should give it a shot…"

"What? But I thought you wanted to train together?" Ash asked in surprise.

"I do, but I just need some alone time with Kasumi. I don't like it as much as you do, but I think the last thing Kasumi and Satoshi need at the moment is to be near each other. Let's give them some space for awhile, to let them heal. Something will work out, I'm sure of it."

Ash took a moment to think hard on it. He didn't like the idea of training without his friends, but Misty has never steered him wrong. Also, she had a point. The two spirits needed some space to recover. "…Okay Misty. We'll try it your way."

Misty stood up and headed for the door, but not before stopping next to Ash and placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Thanks Ash. I'm going to bed now, it's getting late. Good night."

"Night Misty." Ash bided.

Brock released a tired yawn. "I think I'm gonna hit the sack too. There's training to be done, so we should get up early. See you tomorrow Ash."

"Yeah. See ya…" Ash got under his covers and after a few minutes fell asleep. Tomorrow was definitely going to be a busy day.

The next day arrived and everyone thought it would be better to put their plan into action after breakfast, which Brock decided to cook for the entire house as thanks to Misty's sisters for letting them stay. Breakfast was somewhat quiet. Brock was the only one who seemed to be in high spirits, even though he was doing it solely to alleviate the tension. With Ash and Misty, though they knew they shouldn't let last night bother them, it was something so unexpected that they couldn't help but keep thinking about it. Hopefully, things would get better soon.

When breakfast ended, everyone took their leave and went their separate ways for the day. It was planned they would train alone for most of the day then come back by mid evening, roughly 8 o'clock. Hopefully it would be plenty of time before the face-off next week.

Cerulean Training Grounds A – Ash

Ash had traveled some distance from the city in order to find an isolated spot to train. There, he took out his five Pokéballs and summoned all of his Pokémon, which consisted of a Noctowl, Snorlax, Grovyle, Swellow, and Torkoal. All of the Pokémon greeted him happily. It had been awhile since they've all gathered together. Ash smiled happily. "It's been awhile you guys! How've ya been?" The Pokémon cried merrily, answering that they've missed him. "I have a special guest I would like to introduce. Noctowl, think you can use your foresight?" The owl Pokémon nodded and shot twin red beams from its eyes, engulfing the area in a red flash. When the light dissipated, the Pokémon were shocked with what appeared. Satoshi, clad in his ancient clothing and armor, materialized into his physical form. Noctowl and Pikachu had seen him before, so they weren't as surprised as the other Pokémon. What was especially surprising was how similar Satoshi and Ash looked. "Everyone, this is my spiritual friend Satoshi. Satoshi, these are my pals Grovyle, Torkoal, Snorlax, and Swellow. You've already met Pikachu and Noctowl before."

"Uh…right…" Satoshi said unsurely. He turned to face Ash's Pokémon, who all gave him unsure looks. This made the spirit feel a little uneasy. "Um…hello there."

Snorlax proceeded to ignore the spirit and go back to one of his favorite hobbies, sleeping. Torkoal and Swellow carefully approached Satoshi, unsure of his abnormal aura. Also, the face Satoshi had on wasn't friendly looking. While Ash had kind, warm eyes, Satoshi's eyes had a cool, yet scary, look to it. Frankly, Satoshi didn't look like the friendly type.

"Tor…koal?" Torkoal said, standing directly in front of Satoshi.

Satoshi tossed Ash an unsure glance. "Go on Satoshi, it's alright. Say hi to Torkoal."

"Sure…" Satoshi slowly knelt in front of Torkoal, as to not surprise the Fire-type. "Hello…Torkoal." Satoshi felt a little uncomfortable. He'd never met a real life Pokémon before. In his time, he'd heard about them, but never seen one. He also found it strange how they could only say their name over and over. Slowly, he extended his hand to Torkoal. Torkoal then lifted his front foot and placed it in Satoshi's hand. When the two shook hands, they both smiled lightly. "Heh, aren't you an interesting creature." Soon enough, Swellow, Noctowl and Pikachu gathered around Satoshi to greet him. Grovyle, however, didn't trust Satoshi. He may've looked friendly to everyone else, but Grovyle didn't like the feel of his aura. To Grovyle, Satoshi was someone he couldn't trust…yet.

"Alright guys, for the next five days, Satoshi is going to help me train for a big tournament. This isn't a Pokémon tournament, but a human one. I've brought you all out here today so you can help me prepare. So how about it, will you guys help me out?" All of the Pokémon, besides the sleeping Snorlax, gave a resounding cry, agreeing to help Ash in his training. It would be an interesting change from the normal.

"Hmm…I never thought to use these creatures in our training, but perhaps they could be useful. But the question is how to start…" Satoshi stood up and paced back and forth, contemplating on what to teach Ash first. There were many things to teach him, but he needed a good starting point…

…And then, he thought of one.

"Ash." Satoshi started, "…I want you to try and hit me with all you got. Don't hold back, even if it might seriously injure me."

Ash blinked at first, unsure of going all out. Quite honestly, he wasn't sure how much stronger he had gotten, and he might seriously hurt Satoshi. "Are you sure about that…?"

"Yes I'm sure. Just do it." Satoshi assured with a nod.

"Well, you've asked for it…" With that, Ash lunged at Satoshi with his fist raised. Moments before Ash's fist landed on his face, Satoshi shifted to the right, catching Ash completely defenseless. "…Wha…?" Was all Ash had time to say before—

_SLAM!_

Within moments, Ash was on the ground eating dirt. Satoshi had grappled onto Ash's arm and flipped him like a pancake, promptly planting him onto the earth. "Rule one: Don't put all of your strength into a punch unless you are sure you will hit. Otherwise, you'll leave yourself defenseless. Now try again."

Ash immediately got back on his feet and dashed at Satoshi. This time, he performed a spin kick, aiming for the face. It was then Satoshi did a move which took him by complete surprise. Satoshi placed his hands on the ground and did a handstand. In that instant, the back of one of Satoshi's legs grappled and halted Ash's kicking leg while the other slammed into Ash's stomach, causing him to gasp for air. Right then, Satoshi brought the leg that rammed into Ash back a little and held onto Ash's kicking leg, immobilizing it. Before Ash could react, he was sent hurling through the air and landed roughly on the ground. The Pokémon either gasped in amazement at Satoshi's flexibility or winced at Ash's pain.

Coughing up dust, Ash pushed himself up and gawked at Satoshi in shock. "Wha…what on earth was that?"

Satoshi grinned. "That…" He started, "…Is how you're supposed to fight."

A few hours later, it was break time and Ash had finished the first portion of his training. Never in his life had he felt so worn out. Satoshi, reverting to his ghost form to conserve energy, sat next to Ash. _"You lack coordination with your moves, you have slow reflexes and your power has no real direction or passion in it. Quite frankly, you suck."_

"Gee, thanks Satoshi…" Ash said sardonically, rolling his eyes. "I feel so confident in my abilities now..."

At the last comment, Ash noticed a look in Satoshi's face. It was slight, but it looked as if, by some unholy chance, he felt guilty about what he said. _"…But, you're…at least making some progress. If you keep at it…you will grow stronger and better…" _Satoshi turned away, slightly embarrassed.

Ash couldn't believe his ears. Was that…a compliment? Well, more like a semi-compliment, but it was a positive statement. Ever since he fused with Satoshi's spirit, all he got was snipes and rude remarks. He wondered if this change was for a reason…perhaps one involving last night. "Satoshi…um…."

"_Are you going to ask me about last time, that little…argument I had with…her?"_ Ash blinked in surprise, not expecting Satoshi to complete his question. Did he read his mind? _"And if you are wondering if I read your mind to figure that out, I didn't. You're just that predictable, not to mention your face is easy to read."_

Ash's expression softened. Satoshi must be having a tough time. It was especially apparent to Ash after finding out what it meant to be a forsaken one. "Satoshi…Takeshi told me what it meant to be a…a forsaken one…and…last night, when Kasumi said—"

"_That's old news…all of it is. You don't need to concern yourself—"_

"But I do!" Ash interrupted. "We're going to be stuck together, so like you said last night, it would be best if we got to know each other a little bit."

"_I didn't mean it like that…"_ Satoshi was seriously trying to avoid the subject, but Ash pressed on.

"I know but…I…we got off on the wrong foot ever since we first met, but I really want to get to know and understand you. Even though it has been such a short time, I feel like we can become good friends. I mean, it's obvious that statement you made last night wasn't completely true—"

"_What the hell do you know?"_ Satoshi yelled suddenly, causing Ash to jerk back. _"Who the hell do you think you are, telling me what is and what isn't true? You don't know ANYTHING about me, so don't go around, giving me that crap! What happened between Kasumi and I is none of your business, so quit sticking your nose in it!"_ Unable to contain his anger, Satoshi stood up. _"Breaks over. Let's get back into training…now…"_

Ash glanced sadly at Satoshi while giving Noctowl the command to use Foresight. Even though it really wasn't any of his business, Ash truly wanted to know what it was that happened between Satoshi and Kasumi. It was obvious that whatever happened between them hurt Satoshi deeply, and it showed with Satoshi's stricter and more serious attitude in Ash's training for the next few hours…

Cerulean Gym's Basement - Misty

Misty had found a small practicing room in the Cerulean Gym's basement. It was there she was pushing her body to its absolute limit, going by Kasumi's teachings and directions. As her body flowed from one action to another, Satoshi's words fluttered through her mind like an undying echo.

"_You can go on and on about teamwork and working together, but if you are a weak little crybaby, the only thing you will do is drag all of us down, and possibly be the death of us all!"_

As much as she didn't want to admit it, Satoshi was absolutely right. She was weak. She didn't want Ash to take all the pain of battle; she wanted to share it with him. If her love for him was true, then she would do all she could to get stronger, and be able to fight with Ash, for Ash. In the past, Ash had always fought for everyone else, whether to protect something precious or for a cause he believed in. Misty wanted to do the same. There was something to protect and something to believe in. That thing would always be Ash, for now and forever.

Misty's thoughts were interrupted when she felt her chest burn in pain, demanding a break from exercising. She fell on her knees, gasping for air. Kasumi, coaching from her ghost form, noticed this and was surprised. Misty had been training for 4 hours straight with no signs of stopping. A feat like that was very tough to accomplish, though Kasumi had expected such from Misty. Kasumi could relate—no, she _used_ to be able to relate. There was a time where she had something to fight for, something to believe in, but after what happened…and thanks to _him_, it all went crashing down in a ball of flame, never to be revived again.

That something was Kasumi's heart.

"_Alright, that's enough. Let's take a break."_ Kasumi directed.

"I'm…alright…" Misty panted, struggling to stand up. She fell to the floor again when her legs gave way. They felt like jelly. "I…can…keep…going…"

"_No you can't. You can't push your body like this constantly. Take measures to keep your body in top condition. We will continue, but you can't at the moment. We will take a small break first, alright?"_ Kasumi stared at Misty with pleading eyes.

Misty sighed in defeat. Curse those eyes. "Alright, I'll take a break." She sat down at one of the nearby chairs and grabbed a bottle of water, downing half of it in one gulp. She hadn't realized how thirsty she was until now. While she was taking a break, she took note of Kasumi's silence. Something was bothering her, and Kasumi was trying hard not to show it. "Kasumi?" No response. "…Kasumi?" Once again, no reaction. "Kasumi?"

Kasumi was jerked out of her thoughts, but tried to hide it. _"Yes?"_

Misty gazed at her with a worried expression. "Are you alright?"

Kasumi wanted to say 'yes', but she knew Misty had some indication that wasn't the truth. _"…It's nothing. Don't worry about it."_

"Is this about what Satoshi said?" When Kasumi twitched at Satoshi's name, Misty knew she hit it right on the mark.

Kasumi chuckled dryly. "_You know, it really is silly. It shouldn't bother me the slightest, but for some reason, I just can't help it. Heh, I don't even know why I'm thinking about it. I-I mean, it's silly, preposterous! Why should I care? I knew it from the start! A-and also…"_ And from there, Kasumi just babbled on, somewhat incoherently. Misty started understanding Kasumi a little bit more, and felt so sad about it.

It wasn't as simple as Kasumi was strong, but she was forcing herself to be strong.

"Kasumi?" Misty called, breaking Kasumi out of her 'I don't care' rant. "Um…I know this is a silly question, but were you and Satoshi actually…together before?" Kasumi grimaced at the question. She turned away, giving her silence as an answer. Misty felt uncomfortable with the silence, so she pressed on. "Would it be bad if I asked you how it happened…how you two got together?" Hopefully, bringing up happier memories would cheer Kasumi up a little.

It worked. A small smile was brought to Kasumi's lips, as well as a faint blush in her cheeks. _"It happened about 3 years after our first meeting. It was night time, and I couldn't get any sleep. When I looked around, I noticed that Satoshi wasn't anywhere to be seen, so I went searching for him…"_

Kasumi's Flashback – Lumina 5000 years ago – Forest area

A 13 year old Kasumi stalked through the night of the forest, her only light being the moon and the stars. Her search for Satoshi led her to a small pond area. The moonlight glimmered fantastically on the lake, bringing a small smile to her lips. Also, it was there when she noticed the boy she was searching for, pacing back and forth while looking fairly agitated and deep in thought. It was a wonder what was going on with him.

With Satoshi, he started muttering lowly to himself. "This is just so stupid. Why can't I just forget about it and…no, that won't work. I just have to do it and get it over with. But…damn this is annoying!"

"What's annoying?" Kasumi inquired, standing directly behind Satoshi.

"GYAH!" Satoshi jumped away from her, clutching his chest and gasping. "Don't do that!"

Kasumi shot him a flat gaze. "Aren't you from Kuroza? You should be used to stealth by now."

"Tch, whatever." Satoshi sat on the ground with crossed legs and arms, an annoyed expression on his face.

"Anyway, what are you doing up so late, pacing around like crazy?" Kasumi sat next to him, giving him a slightly worried yet serious stare.

Satoshi noticed the hint of concern in her eyes and looked away, a tinge of color appearing on his cheeks. "…Nothing. What about you?"

"Couldn't sleep. Just wanted to see where you were, that's all. Is there something bothering you that you want to talk about?"

"No, nothing." He answered gruffly.

"Well, alright. Good night then." Kasumi got up to leave when Satoshi's hand gently grabbed her arm.

"No, wait…" Satoshi released a deep sigh before continuing, "Actually, there is something I want to talk to you about…"

Kasumi sat down on her knees, listening intently. "Yes?"

Satoshi sat on his knees as well and stared directly into Kasumi's eyes, a serious look on his face. "Kasumi…I'm not good at this stuff, and frankly, it's very troublesome, but I can't continue to ignore it…the thing is…" He stopped and averted his gaze, looking very embarrassed. "The thing is that I…well…it's been a few years since we've traveled together, right? We've been through a lot of stuff and…and…if you weren't here with us; it wouldn't have been as …um…enjoyable. I remember when we first met, you was this hostile girl who kept nagging me for some stupid bike—"

"Ahem, MY stupid bike that YOU broke…" Kasumi corrected.

"Yes, yes, your bike, I get it. That's not what I'm trying to get at."

"Then say whatever it is you are going to say. It's getting late."

"Don't rush me! Anyway, the thing is, it's been about three years since we've met, and…um….I…have been….seeing you in…well…a different way than before. I used to think you were nothing but some scrawny, whiny, obsessive woman who—let me finish!" Satoshi defended, catching Kasumi's deadly glare. He took a deep breath and curled his fist, placing them firmly on his lap. The blush on his cheeks intensified. "But…lately…that's change. Now I see you as…as…as a…b-b-beautiful w-w-woman who I enjoy being with. The truth is…is that…I…I…um...I…"

"Baby steps Satoshi. The alphabet can be very difficult for the stupid. Just remember, after I come J." Kasumi joked.

"Will you shut up? I'm trying to be serious! And dammit, stop laughing!" Satoshi barked, glaring.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Please continue." Kasumi shut up quickly, awaiting Satoshi to finish his statement. Her heart was beating a mile a minute, silently praying it was what she hoped it was.

Summing up his remaining courage, Satoshi stared directly at Kasumi, his face full of resolve and determination. "Anyway, Kasumi…the truth is that…I…l-l-like you…a lot…a whole lot…probably a lot more than that. I really, really, really like you. And, I was hoping that maybe…we could…be more…than friends…"

There was a long pause, and Satoshi patiently awaited his answer. A minute later, he got one. "…That's what you kept me awake for? I'm going back to bed…" Kasumi yawned in boredom, standing up.

Satoshi face-faulted in shock. "STOP MESSING WITH ME AND ANSWER!" He shouted angrily.

Kasumi raised her hands defensively. "Relax, I was just kidding! You are just too easy to mess with…"

"Just answer the bloody question already. Will you…go out…with me?"

"What was that? I couldn't hear you." Kasumi cupped her ears, secretly grinning.

Satoshi gritted his teeth. "Will you go out…with me?"

"Speak louder. I can't hear your mumbling…"

"I ASKED IF YOU WILL GO OUT WITH ME!" Satoshi cried out in frustration, no longer feeling embarrassed about the situation.

Kasumi sweat-dropped, not expecting him to yell so loudly. "Um…now if you could lower your voice and say that one more time…"

Satoshi's eyebrow twitched dangerously, a vein throbbing irritably on his forehead. "Woman, if you keep taunting me…"

"Alright, alright! I'll be serious! Just give me a second to think!" Kasumi waved her hands defensively. She looked up in thought, covertly glancing at Satoshi, who was about to explode from the tension. She was enjoying this almost too much. "Hmm…I don't know…I need something more convincing than that, to see how serious your ever-lasting-love for me is."

"Whoa, I said I really _liked_ you, I never said anything about love! And just what is it I have to do to convince you?"

"Hmm…I know…" She leaned forward, pressing her forehead against his and staring into his chocolate eyes. "…Give me a kiss."

Satoshi's jaw dropped in shock, his entire body completely red.. "A-a-a-a-a WHAT?"

"You heard me. A big wet one on the lips. And be sure to put feeling into it."

A flustered Satoshi swallowed hard and wetted his lips. If he really had to do it… "F…fine, I'll do it." He slowly started inching his lips towards hers, trembling a little.

"…Hold it!" Kasumi said suddenly. "Ugh, must I tell you everything? Wrap your arms around my waist, like this." She took Satoshi's arms and made them wrap firmly around her waist. She then wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed herself onto Satoshi's chest. Though Satoshi didn't notice, she was blushing very hard. "Okay, now go."

"…You love making my life miserable, don't you?"

"I'm just doing my job, now hurry up and do it."

"Okay, okay. Sheesh!" Satoshi swallowed hard again and then leaned in a second time. His heart was pounding so hard it was the only thing he could hear. For a moment, he thought he feel hers beating just as hard. He tilted his head to the side and softly placed his lips upon hers. A powerful rush of euphoria exploded within him, which took him by surprise. The feeling was so intense and incredible, it felt like it would never end, and he never wanted it to. The two soon parted to catch their breaths. It was a moment before Satoshi spoke. "Alright, there's the kiss. So, do I pass?"

Kasumi only took a few seconds to think about it. "Um…yeah, sure, whatever…" She shrugged nonchalantly.

"ACK!" Satoshi face-faulted. The nerve of that girl! "W-W-W-W-WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?"

Kasumi blinked in confusion. "…What's what?"

Satoshi's jaw dropped in absolute astonishment. "That was it? I confessed, and even KISSED you, and all you do is shrug like its nothing?"

Kasumi blinked a few times, not seeing where he was going with this. "…What do you want, a medal?"

"How the hell are you able to stay so damned calm about it? You're supposed to be all shocked and surprised, and then throw yourself on top of me, telling me how you've felt the same for so long! What the hell kind of girl are you?" He pointed his finger at his accusingly.

Kasumi quirked her eyebrow in disbelief. "Throwing myself at you…..right, and just what manga did you get that one from?"

"Well, it was from one of Takeshi's mangas, where this girl and this guy—HEY, WAIT A MINUTE! That is not the point! You're supposed to be overreacting and stuff!"

"Overreacting is your department, not mine."

"I DO NOT OVERREACT!"

"Uh huh, right…aren't you the same guy who chases people around with his sword and threatens to kill them on the daily basis?"

"That's not overreacting; I just tend to release my anger in that kind of way. Besides, when was the last time someone got hurt?"

"Earlier today when that old man bumped into you by accident."

"Hey, he was asking for it! Besides, it was a fair fight. I didn't use any of my weapons."

"That's because you took the old man's cane and beat him senseless with it!"

"That's beside the point! Argh! You know what? I'm going to bed! Good night!" Satoshi, mortified and humiliated, stormed off towards the campsite, leaving Kasumi by herself.

She was about to go back when she looked around, making sure no one was looking. Suddenly, she leapt joyously, shooting her fist into the air. "HUZZAH!"

End of Flashback

"…_And you should've seen his face. He always looks so cute when he's embarrassed."_ Kasumi laughed blissfully at the memory, remembering every aspect of that moment.

Misty found it amazing how at the mention of good times with Satoshi, Kasumi's face would light up with delight and happiness, like all of her anger and sorrow was immediately washed away by waves and joy. At the moment, Kasumi didn't seem like a seasoned warrior or a hardened fighter, but a normal woman who enjoyed some of the simpler things in life. "It sounds like you two really cared for each other."

"_We…"_ That was when the reality returned to Kasumi, causing her momentary bliss to vanish. She faltered. _"We…did…"_

So much of speaking about good times…"Could…you tell me what happened between you two?"

"_The reason things are like this between us is because…because…"_ Kasumi tried and tried, but the more she attempted to retell the situation, the more frightening the current situation grew.

She couldn't remember.

"_I…I don't know…"_ She concluded. She gripped her head in a mild panic. _"I can't…remember…I don't remember what happened…!"_

"Kasumi…?" Misty was somewhat spooked now. What was going on with Kasumi that she seemed to be in so much of a panic? Also, what did she mean about she couldn't remember? How could someone still hate someone else for a reason if they couldn't even remember it?

"_I don't remember…I feel it, but I can't recall what happened…"_ Just then, a memory flashed through Kasumi's mind. She didn't know how, but it happened. It was quicker than an instant, but somewhat enough to realize that small memory was part of the reason why she hated Satoshi so much. A very incomplete memory, but enough to spark an emotion within her: Fury.

Misty quivered at the angry look Kasumi had on her face. If looks could kill, the entire world would be in danger, Satoshi was most likely first on her list. But just as quickly as it came, it went. Kasumi shook her head fiercely, trying to get rid of that furious feeling. Never did Kasumi want to feel that again, ever. _"I'm sorry, but I honestly can't recall what happened. But, the feeling is still there…I know whatever happened changed us for the worse…"_

"It's alright, I'm sorry Kasumi. It…it really wasn't any of my business anyway."

Kasumi sighed. _"I won't let it get in the way of our training. Shall we continue?"_

"Sure." Misty nodded. From there, her training continued.

Cerulean Training Grounds B - Brock

Brock had been training relentlessly. As he tossed a kick here and a punch there, they were extremely unfocused. He wasn't a martial artist, so he wasn't exactly the most graceful fighter to look at. When break time arrived, he decided to use most of the time to rethink his training methods. He was going no where fast, and if he wanted to get better, he needed someone to help him. Takeshi, while a skilled battler and a good teacher, wasn't enough to help Brock learn. What Brock needed was someone to train with. He'd never fought that much in his life, and there was no way he would learn how to do so in five days. It was frustrating.

"I'm not getting anywhere with this…" Brock commented to himself. Though Takeshi was trying to help, he was used to training somewhat experienced fighters. Unfortunately, Brock wasn't one of them, and this proved difficult. "There's gotta be a way for me to get better in five days…"

"What if I said you could do it in three days and have plenty of time for powering up?" A voice said out of the blue.

Brock stood straight and glanced around the area. He couldn't see a soul anywhere. "Who's there?" He asked in a reactionary response.

"You might find out if you look behind you." The voice spoke, directly behind Brock

"GYAH!" Brock jumped and swiftly turned around, greeted by a group familiar faces. "It's…you guys!" He gasped. Of all the people to meet, he certainly didn't expect to see them so suddenly.

Team Nova.

"Yo, I heard you were looking for sparring partners!" Wes said, waving at the breeder.

"I…well…yeah…I kinda am…"

"Why are you out here by yourself? Where's Ash and that red headed girlfriend of his?" Gary asked.

"Well…we kinda thought it would be better to train separately for the next five days, being that we're entering in this tournament coming up and everything."

Rui cocked her head slightly as she approached Brock. "Hey Brock! Who's your friend?"

"Hmm?" Brock turned around and saw no one. "What friend?"

"The ghostly one." She pointed out, referring to Takeshi's spirit who was standing next to Brock.

Brock stumbled back in surprise. Even Takeshi was shocked. "You…you can see him?" Brock stuttered.

Wes rubbed the back of his neck while chuckling. "Yeah, we all got that first impression too. Rui has a special gift, one of many. For one thing, she can see things that most humans can't see. That ability helped me out tremendously in the past."

"Anyway…" Gary started, "We know you have a small problem, seeing that you can't train or fight with crap."

"Hey!" Brock yelled.

"BUT! With all of his helping you, five days will all you need to beat every single opponent without breaking a sweat."

"Of course, it won't be easy." Brendan warned, "I won't lie to you; training under us will be brutal. You could even lose your life."

"I…could die?" Brock shivered at the thought.

"Brother!" Wes chastised. "Quit scaring him like that! It's not going to be that bad!" Brock sighed in relief. "…I mean sure, he might break most of his bones, get many fractures, and even lose a limb or two, but he won't die!" Brock's shoulders slumped. Yeah, like he would feel a lot better after hearing _that_.

"Don't worry Brock." Ritchie assured, patting the breeder's back. "It will be hard, but don't let those two scare you, it won't be that serious. Let us help you. I'm sure you will be tons stronger after. Take it from me, it will be worth it."

Brock thought about it for a moment. If what they said was true, then there was no way he could refuse their help. He surely needed it. "Okay, I'll accept your help. Thanks you guys."

Wes grinned widely with anticipation. "Good, then the deal is set. No turning back now!"

_SMACK!_

"AGH!" Brock was punched across the face and sent hurling onto the ground. With a grunt, he stood up and rubbed his cheek. "What was that—"

"NO TALKING UNLESS I SAY SO SLACKER!" Wes commanded with a booming voice. His normal joking, happy-go-lucky personality vanished, replaced with a cold, ruthless and merciless Wes.

"But—"

_SMACK!_

"GAH!" Brock was promptly kicked in the face, currently howling in pain.

"I SAID NO TALKING! AND QUIT YOUR WHINING, YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF CRAP!" Wes demanded. Brock immediately shut up, not wanting another beat down. Wes cracked his knuckles threateningly, a frightening look on his face. "Now stand up. Your training begins now."

5 days of fierce training later, it was the final training day before the big tournament. Whenever Ash and Misty returned to the house for the night, they found it strange that Brock never showed up. They felt better when they received a call every night from Brock, letting them know that he was alive and well…to an extent. The final day of training would be a test for each individual, to see if they were worthy of facing Soma, the main reason for their training.

Cerulean Training Grounds A – Ash

Ash stood in the center of the training area, surrounded by all of his Pokémon. Satoshi was in front of Ash, within the ring of Pokémon. He held an emotionless expression. "So Ash…are you ready?"

"I'm more than ready." Ash said with confidence.

"You asked for it. Test 1, Defense!" Upon Satoshi's command, Torkoal stepped up. Ash faced Torkoal and stood stock still, his eyes completely focused. "And…initiate! Torkoal, use Overheat at full power!" In that instant, Torkoal released a massive ball of flame and launched it at Ash. Just before the flame hit, Ash guarded by creating an X with his arms and closing his eyes.

_BOOM_!

The dirt on the ground exploded in a flurry of brown mist, engulfing Ash. Moments later, the dust settled, and Ash emerged out of it. Satoshi grinned at the results. "Test 1 complete. You've withstood the fire attack with minimal damage. I estimate 10 percent?"

"Roughly. Let's go with the next test!" Ash pressed on.

Satoshi nodded and glanced at Snorlax. "Test 2, Offense!" Snorlax stood up and waddled his way in front of Ash. "And…initiate!"

"GRAAAH!" Ash reeled back his fist and slammed it into Snorlax's stomach. The heavy Pokémon took a sharp intake of breath and was pushed back by the blow. Ash muttered a small apology to the heavy Pokémon, who simply shrugged off the attack by his trainer.

Test 2 complete. Maximum feet pushed: 4 feet. Not bad, shall we go on?" When Ash nodded, Satoshi went on with the next test. "Test 3, Speed!" Swellow hovered and circled around Ash's head, awaiting further orders. "Alright, one lap around the area. On your marks…get set…GO!" Immediately, Ash and the bird dashed off with amazing speed, circling around the perimeter of the training grounds. Only a few moments later, Ash reached the end of the lap. Satoshi nodded in approval. "Test 3 complete. Ash wins the race by 1.2 seconds. Not too shabby."

"Hehe, thanks…" Ash thanked abashedly, rubbing his head. "Let's go on with the next one."

"Sure. Test 4, Evasion." At the call, Grovyle stepped up to the plate, scrutinizing Satoshi at the corner of his eye. Though Satoshi proved friendly, he still didn't trust him. "And…initiate!" Right then, Grovyle lunged at Ash with his arm blades, swiping with blindingly swift slashes. Ash dodged each attack smoothly while either back flipping, pulling off feints, side stepping, or pulling off many acrobatic dodges, each done with poise, planning and precision. This had gone on until Satoshi called out "And time! A full 30 seconds, and not a scratch. Looking good. Let's go on to the next one."

"Ready when you are."

"Alright, Test 5, Jumping." It was Noctowl's turn, and the owl Pokémon flew high into the air. "And…initiate!"

"Here…we…go!" From a crouch, Ash sprung high into the air. Though his jumping speed slowed towards the end, he managed to touch Noctowl's claws. Once he landed, Satoshi started with the results. "Test 5 complete. Estimated height: 20 feet. Having fun yet?"

"Tons!" Ash answered cheerfully.

"Good. Alright, Test 6, Precision." Right then, Pikachu stepped in front of Ash, smiling at his friend proudly. "Let's see how long it takes for you to catch Pikachu. And…Initiate!" Suddenly, Pikachu put his agility attack into overdrive and zipped around Ash at a dizzying pace. Ash closed his eyes and focused on his target. While Ash's eyes were closed, Satoshi nodded to Pikachu, grinning sneakily. Noting to signal, Pikachu sent a small jolt of electricity at Ash. The attack was swift, and it didn't seem like the attack would miss.

Surprisingly, not only did Ash dodge the surprise strike, but caught Pikachu by the tail, and all with his eyes closed!

"Gotcha!" Ash yelled victoriously. For a split second, Satoshi had a very surprised look on his face, which soon turned into an impressed one. "Test 6 complete. 4.9 seconds to catch Pikachu. Also, Test 7 complete. Success rate of surprise assaults, 0. Nice one."

"Heh, couldn't have done it without your guidance." Ash flashed Satoshi a thumbs up. "Thanks a bunch. I owe ya one!"

Satoshi crossed his arms, smirking casually. "No need to thank me, all I did was show you the ropes. You're the one who pulled it off."

"Yeah. Well, at least that's it for the test. Now I can relax before the—"

"Who said the tests was over?" Satoshi cut in, surprising Ash.

"Wha? But there was suppose to only be 6 tests, but you threw in a surprise 7th one. You mean there's more?"

"Relax, there's only one more. What, feeling too tired for one more test?"

Ash huffed in response, competitiveness getting the best of him. "Bring it on! What's the last test?"

A grin appeared on Satoshi's face, one that Ash grew to dislike. It always meant something sneaky. "Final test…me!"

Ash gasped in surprise. He had not been expecting that. "Me defeat you?"

"No, no, no, I'm not trying to give you the impossible. All you have to do is land a direct hit and that's it."

Ash growled inwardly. What did he mean 'give him the impossible'? "Fine, but I won't go easy on you!" Ash slide his foot back and held his left hand out while his right was pulled back, both of which had their palms open. He leaned forward and positioned himself for an assault. "Just give me the word when."

Satoshi took a pose that reflected Ash's. "And…initiate!" Dust shot up into the air as Ash propelled himself at Satoshi. Satoshi was given a small window of opportunity andtook full advantage of it. He jumped to perform a spin kick in the air at Ash. Ash flung himself at the ground, slammed one of his palms onto the ground, and blocked Satoshi's kick with an upside down spin kick on his own. _'Hmm…clever, and a good move on his end. Using his legs instead of his arms, he was able to match the strength of my leg and cancel out the attack without overemphasizing his strength. Not bad, but let's see how he likes this!'_ Satoshi let himself fall to the ground and used one of his hands as a stand to spin his legs the other direction, planning to trip Ash and make him fall on his head. To his surprise, Ash's free hand clamped down Satoshi's foot, immobilizing him and leaving him open for one of Ash's kicks.

"Gotcha!" Ash cried, thrusting his foot at Satoshi's face. Victory would've been Ash's, had Satoshi not been so resourceful. Satoshi cocked his knee and blocked the kick that was aiming for his face. Using the force of the kick, he rolled on the ground and back onto his feet. Almost instantaneously, Ash was also on his feet and in Satoshi's face. Ash sent a wave of quick and accurate jabs at Satoshi, aiming at spots other than his face.

Satoshi smirked in satisfaction as he evaded all the blows with flashy yet professional movements. _'Another good plan. Aiming for someone's face is often predictable and could be seen coming. However, if he aims for all kinds of places with random patterns, the opponent won't know where he will strike next. Looks like Ash is really getting the hang of things.'_ Ash suddenly changed his tactic and took a wild, full powered swing toward Satoshi's face. Right then, Satoshi's grin dropped in disappointment as he stepped back to dodge the attack. _'Just great…it looks like my talk about planning and coordination went out the window. Now he's going to leave himself open. Tch, that idiot…'_ He spat mentally. He noticed something strange when Ash's fist continued in its course, causing Ash to have his back facing Satoshi. He couldn't believe it. Had Ash really lost his mind? A fighter should never have his back turned to his opponent. It looked like Ash truly wasn't ready to enter the tournament…

Or so he thought…

Ash, much to Satoshi's astonishment, performed a back flip while facing the opposite direction, aiming to kick Satoshi in the process. In total reflex, Satoshi used both of his arms to block the kick. Satoshi noticed the look in Ash's face, which had a sneaky grin that rivaled his own. His eyes suddenly widened in surprise.

Ash had left himself open on purpose!

Satoshi didn't have time to think because at the corner of his eye he barely saw Ash's fist aiming for his stomach. With another instinctive reflex, he lifted one of his knees to block the fist attack. Satoshi didn't have time to rest however, because another one of Ash's fist was aiming for his face! Luckily, he managed to block the second attack by moving one of his hands to block the attack. _'Phew! That was too close! He nearly got me!'_

However, though Satoshi blocked the first kick and the two punches, he neglected the fact he had no chance to block the second kick following the path of the first one…

_WHAM!_

"AH!" Satoshi felt the tip of Ash's foot slam onto the top of his head. While Satoshi had one of his forearms blocking the first kick, his attention was too drawn to the punches to put up enough defenses to block the follow-up kick. Satoshi dropped onto the ground face-first. Ash landed on the ground, standing in front of Satoshi. "Agh…that was sneaky, underhanded, reckless and freaking insane…" The darkness guardian pushed himself off the ground and looked up at Ash, his face full of irritation. Right when Ash felt he had done something wrong, his thoughts were disproved by two hands clasping his shoulders, and a very satisfied smile from Satoshi. "That's just the way I like it! Congratulations, you've passed the 8th and final test. You are now ready to take on anything and anyone!"

"Awesome!" Ash cheered with a cheeky smile. All of his Pokémon clapped in recognition of his achievements. Ash had improved dramatically within the five days he was given to train. This was certainly a grand day for Ash!

"Alright, you've completed your training. Now, as for proper celebrations, how about we head back to the gym and get ourselves something to eat?" Satoshi suggested.

"I say I like how you think! Let's go!" Filled with new vigor, Ash proudly walked towards the Cerulean Gym, feeling happy about his accomplishments. The training was especially tough, and there were times when he felt like giving up, but he knew none of his friends would do such a thing, and Satoshi would've probably killed him. Besides, he was never the type to give up, and because of that, he succeeded in growing so much stronger. He felt he was ready to take on anything.

Cerulean City Gym

When Ash arrived back at the gym, he noticed Misty sitting on the living room couch, looking very exhausted. When she turned to see Ash approaching her, she smiled brightly. "Welcome back Ash!" Misty greeted cheerfully, glad to see him.

"It's good to be back. How did your training go, as well as the…other thing…?"

"My training was okay, nothing special." Misty answered modestly. Ash would be proud if he knew how much better and stronger she had gotten, not to mention learning many tricks. "As for the other thing…well…"

"Don't worry, Satoshi's not listening. He used up a lot of energy to sustain the physical form under Noctowl's Foresight. He decided to rest for the time being, until tomorrow. What about…?"

"Kasumi's resting as well. It's been a long day and all. Anyway, did Satoshi say anything about you know what?"

Ash scratched the back of his head, unsure of how to exactly answer. "He's kinda…hostile on the subject. If I make a remark about it, he sorta snaps at me. But…sometimes I see something…"

"Something?" Misty asked.

"Yeah, kinda like he's angry with something. Well, it's a different kind of angry from normal. If anything, it's not hatred or anything like that, but more like…"

"Hurt?"

"Yeah, something like that. How about Kasumi?"

"Uh…she's handling it in her own way. She's trying really hard to hide it, but I think the whole thing got her really upset."

Probably the same with Satoshi…" Silence soon enveloped the two. They really wanted to help their spiritual counterparts, but didn't know where to start. If they did or said the wrong thing, the situation might worsen. It wasn't even known what separated them. Ash and Misty knew about the story regarding the guardians finding out they were sworn enemies, but from the way the spirits regarded each other, it seemed as if something more happened between Satoshi and Kasumi, something much bigger and dramatizing. It was tempting to try and get the truth out of them, but it might do more harm than good. In the end, it was decided to let them cool down for awhile before pressing on the subject again.

The need to change the topic was apparent with the silence, so Misty took the initiative. "Anyway, I got a message from Brock. He said he would meet us when the tournament starts since he wasn't coming home tonight…again…"

Ash groaned despairingly. Brock was really starting to get him worried. "What on earth is Brock doing that he wouldn't come home for five days straight? We know he's still alive since he sends us messages, but I'm getting really worried."

"I know how you feel, but Brock is more than old enough to take care of himself. Let's let him do what he wants to do. I'm sure he'll be fine."

"Yeah, I suppose." Ash stretched out his arms, followed by a yawn. "I'm beat for today. I'll see you at the tournament tomorrow. Good night Misty."

"Good night Ash." When Ash left the living room for his and Brock's room, Misty released a relaxed sigh. She was pretty beat too, with her final phase of training and all. With a grunt, she got off the couch and headed towards her room for some shut eye.

Misty's Unconscious Mind

The silver haired spirit was wide awake and had heard every word of Ash and Misty's conversation. She sat on the floor, hugging her knees and placing her face on her lap. A small, saddened chuckle escaped her lips. "…I guess Satoshi is still angry with what I said to him. In a way, I guess I deserved to hear what Satoshi really thought about me, it's no surprise. I've lived with that fact for quite awhile, but…I still don't get it…" An almost inaudible sniffle could be heard. "I don't care about him anymore. I can't care about him anymore. That was what made me weak. But still…why does what he said hurt…and why does it hurt so much…?"

Ash's Unconscious Mind

Satoshi paced around in a room with nothing but black walls, floor and ceiling, a very lonely and isolated area he had created for himself. It represented how he felt his true nature was. He entered this room whenever he needed a moment to cool off or think, and during the last five days, the room was an absolute necessity. His eyebrows were knit together, indicating he was at the peak of frustration.

"Why am I so heated about this? All I said was the truth! She…she shouldn't have reacted in such a way!" He muttered to himself. His mind began to whirl at the thoughts of what happened five nights ago. Why couldn't he just keep his big mouth shut? "If only…if only she didn't butt into my conversation with Misty, maybe then……then…okay, maybe I did go just a little too far with the comments, but it had to be said! I did nothing wrong!" He shook his head rapidly, trying to shake off whatever feeling was hanging over him. "Ugh…what's more, what was I going to say to her before she ran off into Misty's mind? Truly, this is just way too troublesome. Damn that girl!"

The more he thought about what happened, the more confused he got. The expression on her face clearly read surprise and hurt. "But…but she shouldn't have been hurt, she's way too stubborn to be hurt. I…sure it was out of anger, but she seriously didn't have to react that way. As if…as if she didn't realize that was how I felt…" Satoshi's shoulders slumped as he felt more and more guilty. "Perhaps I really did come out too strong. It…it wouldn't be right to leave the situation like this. I should apolo—NO!" He shouted suddenly, doing a 180 turn on his heels. "I shouldn't need to apologize! What she said to me was harsh too! If anything, she should apologize…at least first…GRAH!" He screamed out in frustration, grabbing at his hair. "What's wrong with me? I shouldn't be feeling bad, guilty or anything! It's over between us, so I shouldn't feel anything regarding to her! She's nothing to me! Nothing…" Backing up, he let himself lean against a wall and slid onto the floor. "After all, it's like she said, I'm a forsaken one. I don't need anyone except myself, so nothing should matter. I have no heart…there's no room for that or errors." There was a long pause. "…Tomorrow. I'll get this cleared up tomorrow. Maybe then I'll get some peace soon…" He closed his eyes and got himself comfortable, planning to get some sleep. "…And hopefully, she'll be out of my dreams too…"

* * *

Things are getting VERY interesting, huh? I honestly liked this chapter, as it wasn't nearly as tough to do as the last chapter. Now some things are revealed, and will hopefully keep you guessing. Stay tune for a fun and exciting chapter coming up, and hopefully it would be a quick update. Don't forget to review, cause they really do inspire me to do better! 


	13. Prelude to glory! Part 1

**_Chapter 13 – Prelude to glory – part 1_**

Cerulean Gym – Registrar Office 

It was the night before the tournament in Cerulean City. Daisy agreed to meet with Soma in order to go over plans for the tournament. Once the Fire Vizier saw the number of people entering however, he was quite disappointed.

"Only 8 people? This is unacceptable! At this rate, I won't get to enjoy any real battles!" Soma growled.

"Sorry, but this is the best we've got. After all, word barely got out of the city. It looks like this tournament is going to be a big flop." Daisy let her head hit the wooden table she was sitting at and sighed. The tournament was supposed to draw a lot of attention, but it looked like her hopes were set too high. "And to think it was such a good idea to start with…"

Soma had a thoughtful look on his face. "Hmm…so all we need are more contestants, and powerful ones?"

"Yeah, we'll need a bunch of people, but I'm not sure what kind of talent is out there. Oh well…."

"Well, it looks like I got no choice. I'll have to call in a few fighters…"

"Huh?" Daisy looked up at Soma, curious yet hopeful. "Call in?"

Soma nodded. "Yeah. I got connections, so there's nothing to worry about. By tomorrow, you'll have plenty of fighters to work with. Just wait for my word to prepare the pairings for the battles. I'll be right back." Soma walked out of the office, leaving Daisy confused.

A half an hour later…

"I'm back! Here's the list of new entrants!" Soma returned to the office with a list of names.

When Daisy glanced at the list, her jaw dropped in shock. "24 people? How on earth did you manage to get that many in a half hour?"

Soma scratched his head. "Actually, I was hoping for well over 200, but I guess they were asleep or something. It's the end of the night after all."

Daisy was rendered speechless. She couldn't possibly imagine that many people in such a small scale tournament. Also, it was a mystery as to how great Soma's connections were. "Err…well…I'll say we definitely have enough people to get this tournament underway. Thanks for your assistance!"

"It's no problem. Just be sure to work on the pairings. I'm going to rest up for the tournament." Soma waved goodbye as he left the office.

Cerulean Gym – Arena

Ash and Misty were surprised with the renovations made to the gym's Pokémon battle area. On top of the pool was a thick, wooden floor board. In the middle of the stage was a red Pokéball symbol, which was normally used for Pokémon battles. The platform was created so there was a boundary where someone could fall off, thus creating a ring-out barrier. People from all over Cerulean City occupied the seats, awaiting the fantastic battles soon to come.

Brock had mentioned he would arrive in time for his match, so he wasn't going to join Ash and Misty. It was safe to say the two were frustrated with Brock's disappearance. Hopefully, there was a good reason. Pikachu, as always, accompanied Ash by hanging onto his shoulder, but was told to wait with either Brock (if he ever arrives) or Misty. There were a lot of fighters in the waiting area, none of them Ash or Misty could recognize. Each of them looked close to normal, though it was easy to tell each of them were very strong. Soma wasn't in the area, which was a surprise. Ash didn't doubt someone like him was in the tournament, but the only question was where.

There were two people in particular that caught Ash's attention, and if his guess was correct, he caught their attention as well. One of them was a man with an emotionless yellow stare with jet black hair falling over half of his face. His cloak, long pants, shirt and boots were as dark as his hair. The man talking with the dark haired one frightened Ash for reasons unknown. He had semi-long white hair, a black leather trench coat, lengthy black boots, and something resembling a black, stealth wetsuit under his coat. A blue, transparent visor was over his dangerous looking red eyes. Though the white haired man had a calmer look than the other one, Ash had a feeling he was much eviler.

"Excuse me, if I could, like, have your attention, I would really appreciate it." Lily called out. Everyone directed their attention to the pink haired sensational sister. "Okay, like, before you guys go out their and maul each other, I would like to go over the ground rules. Rule number 1 – The use of weapons is, like, prohibited. Rule number 2 – Killing anyone will immediately disqualify you from the tournament, so please, let's not have any "accidents". Rule number 3 – The conditions for losing is either you are knocked out, or you are outside the ring for longer than 10 counts. Besides that, go out there and kick some butt!"

"Yeah, let's do it!" A voice yelled out excitedly. Many of the fighters cheered, increasing their own moral.

"Alright, that's good to hear! Now, get ready because it's time to start the first battle. Let's see…" Lily pulled up a sheet of paper with a list of pairings. "The first match will start off with Ash Ketchum versus Spike Spigel."

"Alright, I'm up first!" Ash cried excitedly.

"Yo." A man with bushy green hair waved lazily. He wore a simple pair of black shoes, blue pants, coat and yellow undershirt. Both Spike and Ash walked up to the entrance, awaiting word from Daisy, the announcer.

Out on the arena, there was hustle and bustle among the stands. Suddenly, the lights grew dim, causing everyone to go silent. "Alright Cerulean City, welcome to our first annual martial arts tournament!" The crowd cheered in response. They grew silent soon after. "We've gathered only the best fighters from all over to compete in combat for the grand prize, 10,000 dollars and free tickets to the sensational sisters' next show!" Ash couldn't help but sweat-drop. Those sensational sisters sure liked to advertise themselves. "So, without further ado, let's get this tournament started! First up to the plate is a boy from Pallet Town with fist of steel and a heart of gold. Let's give a warm welcome to ASH KETCHUM!" The spotlight flashed at Ash, who was startled at first. He quickly regained his composure and walked onto the arena, albeit a little nervous and stiff. "The second fighter is actually a bounty hunter from…what's this…Mars? And he rides with three other companions and a dog on a spaceship called The Bebop, let's give a hand to SPIKE SPIGEL!" The spotlight changed its target from Ash to Spike, who seemed rather laidback and calm. He made his way to the arena, standing on the other side of the platform. Even though Daisy sounded enthusiastic about the fight, the crowd didn't feel the same way about the pairing.

"What kind of match up is this? A kid against a bounty hunter?"

"This looks pretty fixed to me!"

"Poor kid's gonna get mauled!"

"What's a Mars and Bebop?"

The resounding boos made Ash feel dispirited. _"Forget about them Ash, after this match, they'll surely change their opinion about you_." Satoshi reassured, masking his appearance.

Those words made Ash feel a little better. "Thanks Satoshi…" He whispered quietly.

"Hm? Say something kid?" Spike asked.

"Huh? Oh, nothing!" Ash answered quickly.

Spike was still confused, but couldn't care less. "Anyway, you may be a kid, but I won't go easy on you. Money is money, and that's what I'm here for."

"I'm here for other reasons. Don't take me for granted because I'm a kid."

Violet walked onto the stage with a microphone, the spotlight following her direction. She stepped in between the fighters. "Alright fighters! Are you two clear on the rules and conditions for winning?" Both Spike and Ash nodded. "Good, then let's get started! Round 1 – Ash Ketchum versus Spike Spigel! Ready…!" Violet darted away from the arena, standing outside the battling stage. "FIGHT!"

(Pushing the sky – Seatbelts)

"Bring it on kid. I'll give you the first shot." Spike taunted, making the notion with his hand.

"You've asked for it!" Ash ran towards Spike with his fist raised. Once he was in range, Ash threw a flurry of punch and kick attacks at Spike, who dodged them with ease.

"Woo! Hey! You're getting closer! Too slow!" Spike toyed with a smirk. It was then Spike grabbed Ash's fist, and with the flick of the wrist, sent Ash flying…almost.

"Gotcha!" Ash yelled victoriously, grabbing onto Spike's arm. He managed to land on his feet and used the momentum to lift Spike from the ground.

_SLAM!_

"ACK!" Spike was smashed onto the ground on his back. He instantly recovered by kicked up and at Ash's face.

_WHAM!_

Ash fell back, but rolled onto his feet immediately and dashed towards Spike, who also recovered. Ash performed a thrust punch, only for Spike to spin out of the way. Spike managed to get behind Ash and perform a spin kick, but Ash saw it coming and blocked it with his elbow. Spike continued sending a swarm of attack from behind Ash, but the trainer managed to block and parry each move skillfully. When Ash saw an opening, he dashed forward, turned around, and leapt at Spike in an aerial flip kick. Spike reactively blocked the kick coming from above with both arms, thinking Ash wouldn't be able to do much else.

He was wrong.

Ash back flipped and landed into a crouch in front of Spike so swiftly, the bounty hunter was unable to react in time. With an upward kick, Ash sent Spike flying into the air. He jumped high into the air until he was at a higher elevation than Spike, who was in a temporary daze. "Ketchum Stomp!" Ash yelled. With a downward thrust, Ash landed on Spike's chest and repeatedly stomped on it until Spike was freefalling quickly to the ground. Ash finished off the attack with a more powerful stomp when Spike's body hit the ground. Jumping off, Ash went defensive and waited for Spike to recover.

The bounty hunter, winded and injured, managed to get back on his feet with little struggling. That attack knocked him pretty high, and he was hurt all over. "Hey, you're not too bad. I guess I should start getting serious."

Ash smirked. "You should've been from the start."

"Yeah, but now's different. Keep your eye on the birdie, cause' this bird's gonna do a trick." Spike dash to the side, then at Ash.

'This again? What is that guy up to?' Ash decided to go defensive and watched Spike's movements carefully. When Spike closed in, Ash swung his fist to strike, but the green haired martial arts parried it and jabbed Ash's face twice. Ash recoiled and performed a back spin kick, only to have Spike catch his foot and trip him.

"Too slow." Spike said as he downed Ash. He was about to slam down on Ash with his foot when the agile teen brought his legs to his chest, using his feet to block the stomp attack, then pushed his legs out, throwing Spike out of balance.

'This is my chance! I should finish this quickly!' Ash thought. Tensing his arms and legs, Ash dove towards Spike speedily. Spike couldn't react in time as Ash smashed his knee into Spike's stomach and followed with an uplifting kick. Catching Spike's foot, Ash spun him around and tossed him into the air. He jumped into the air with Spike into a high-speed spin. "Here we go! Ketchum Spike!" Ash used the full momentum of his spin to land a powerful roundhouse. Spike shot downward and landed hard onto the ground outside the arena. Ash landed with a forward flip, staggering slightly. Spike lay unconscious.

Violet quickly ran next to Spike to check on his condition. Once it was confirmed, she grabbed Ash's hand and held it high. "And the winner for the first match by a knockout is ASH KETCHUM!"

The crowd was in shock. Everyone expected him to get a total beatdown, but it turned out to be the other way around. The crowd was in total silence until one person started clapping, soon followed by two, then three, and so on until everyone started clapping in recognition. Ash left the stage while a group of Nurse Joys picked up Spike on a stretcher.

Once Ash made it back to the waiting room, he was greeted by Misty and Pikachu. "That was great Ash!" Misty praised.

"Heh, thanks. It wasn't too hard, though I wasn't so sure who would win at first. Looks like I'm already done for this round. I wonder whose next…"

Moments later, Lily appeared in front of the fighters again with her list of pairings. "Okay, let's keep the ball rolling! Misty and Jam Kuradoberi, please follow me."

"You're up next Misty! Good luck!" Ash praised, giving her the thumbs up.

"Thanks. I will do my best!" After handing Ash his Pikachu to hold, Misty followed Lily. Misty's opponent was a very pretty brunette with brown eyes and red high heels. Her clothing style consisted of a sleeveless, red Chinese shirt with a pink mini skirt and large, detached red sleeves on her wrist. The two waited at the entrance for Daisy to give introductions, which would be soon.

Jam crossed her arms and glanced at Misty on the side. "You're in this competition just to impress your little boyfriend, huh?"

"He's NOT my boyfriend!" Misty denied heatedly, a blush on her face.

"Hmph, getting embarrassed so easily, how immature. I have noble reasons for entering this tournament, like using the money to improve my fantastic restaurant. Sorry, but this match is going to end quickly."

"Of course, since I plan on winning it." Misty back-talked with a huff. Jam grunted but said no more as she faced forward.

Daisy's voice could be heard on the loud speaker. "I hope you all are excited for our next match! In one corner, we have a fiery red head with a bad attitude and equally ferocious skills. Please welcome the runt of the sensational sisters, MISTY WATERFLOWER!"

"Stupid sisters…" Misty growled, clenching her fist and teeth. The introduction was more of an insult than anything. She quickly recovered before the spotlight shone down on her.

Daisy continued the introductions. "And in the other corner, we have an experienced martial artist whose skill is only rivaled by her fantastic cooking skills. Coming all the way from China, please give a hand to JAM KURADOBERI!"

The spotlight changed its target to Jam, who was waving frantically in a specific direction. "KY! HEY KY! LOOK OVER HERE HONEY!" She screamed.

Misty started at Jam in surprise. 'And she calls ME immature?' She, along with most of the crowd, sweat-dropped fiercely and turned to the direction Jam was calling. It was easy to tell who Ky was, since there was a rather handsome blonde man in a specially made holy knight's uniform covering his face in embarrassment. Everyone thought the same thing. Poor Ky…

Among the audience, three people sat next to the person in question, who was very red in the face. "Someone kill me…" Ky whispered to himself, thoroughly embarrassed. And to think it started out as a simple date…

"Don't worry Ky, I'm sure Jam means well. Even if she shows her affections rather…openly…" A young brunette with an orange pirate's outfit reasoned, gently patting Ky on the shoulder.

"May's right. If I were you, I would count myself lucky. I mean, it's not everyday a hot chick falls head over heels for you. Any guy would kill to be in your position, isn't that right Sol?" A man sitting next to May said. He had a black jacket with no undershirt, long pants, cowboy boots and a stylish hat to match his good looks.

Sol, who was sitting next to Ky, had a red plated forehead protector, a black and red sleeveless shirt with a wide collar, white pants and a belt with the words "Free" engraved on it. He sighed in irritation as he ran his hand through his long and thick brown hair. "Why am I even here…?"

Back in the arena, Misty and Jam were standing in their designated positions, waiting for word to start their battle. Once again, Violet, the judge, approached the two fighters. "Okay you two, do you know the rules?" The two women nodded. "Okay, let's get started. Round 2 – Misty versus Jam Kuradoberi. Ready…?" Violet escaped the vicinity of the battlefield. "FIGHT!"

(Babel noise – Guilty Gear XX)

In that instant, both girls moved so fast it was almost undetectable to the naked eye. There were a few glimpses of the girls and each of them exchanging blow after blow, but they would disappear soon after. Ash was amazed with Misty's speed. He could barely keep up.

A minute into the battle, both girls appeared from their super speed clashes to gather their breaths. When Misty looked up, she noticed Jam forming a ball of energy in her hands. It was small and yellowish with a hint of white and purple in it. "Eat this!" Jam cried, aiming the ball of light at Misty. "Banri Senken!"

_ZAM!_

Misty was struck by several beams of light shooting from the ball of energy. After Misty received enough hits, Jam stopped her barrage of long range attacks and ran towards Misty with her arms folded behind her back. When Misty swung her fist at Jam, the Chinese martial artist dashed past her so fast it seemed as though Misty was moving in slow motion. Jam reappeared behind Misty and charged at her with her fist glowing with Chi energy. "Senri Shishou!"

_WHAM!_

Misty tumbled forward, but quickly got back on her feet. There was no time for rest since Jam was already closing in. When Misty threw a kick at Jam, the brunette blocked with smoothly with the flick of her wrist, leaving a dead opening for Jam to abuse. "Saishinshou!" She used her elbow to slam Misty's stomach with immense force, and with a cry, smashed the red head's chin with her palm, sending her high in the air. While Misty was in the air, Jam was charging up a load of Chi energy in one hand while keeping her arm steady with the other. The ball was small, but dense. When Misty started to fall, her eyes caught a small glimpse of Jam charging up and immediately braced herself.

"Time to finish this! Special attack: Renhoukyaku!" Jam called out. Misty was about to hit the ground when Jam flashed her palm merely inches away from her. Just then, Jam released a huge ball of Chi energy enveloping the two. The explosion of Chi was for a few instances, but enough to injure Misty and send her tumbling on the ground. Misty remained for the ground, her body moving up and down to indicate she was still breathing.

Watching the scene, Ash couldn't help but worry about Misty. She was getting a pounding from Jam. "I hope she doesn't lose…"

"Hmm…" Satoshi wasn't convinced. He had a feeling Misty was tougher than that, especially if she trained under Kasumi. "Don't count her out yet. They'll pull through."

Ash was a little surprised with Satoshi. It seemed as though he wanted Kasumi and Misty to win the battle. Before, Ash thought Satoshi hated Kasumi, but for the moment, it looked like he was hoping the girls wouldn't lose. Satoshi was just one tough puzzle to crack.

In the battle arena, Jam crossed her arms and smirked victoriously. "Hmph, is that all you got? I've handled much tougher opponents!"

"Grr …" Misty growled.

"_Misty, enough playing around. I know you've already memorized her movement patterns, so finish her already."_ Kasumi instructed.

"Alright, I'll be serious this time." Misty stood up and took on a battle stance unknown to jam. Her palms were loosened, and she was making smooth yet slow motions with her hands, her body doing the same. It was safe to assume Misty was performing a very majestic yet subtle dance.

'Well this is new.' Jam thought, eyeing Misty strangely. 'I should probably strike fast and knock her off balance before she pulls anything.' The plan in mind, she swiftly ran at Misty. When Jam threw a quick jab at Misty, her dance like movements allowed her to dodge with ease. When Misty did so, she gently, yet quickly struck Jam's arm. Strangely, it was only three harmless taps: Jam's forearm, her elbow, and biceps. Jam struck with her other arm, but Misty did the exact same thing, except she extended the combo and softly struck Jam's stomach and two shoulders with her palm. Annoyed, Jam performed a mid spin kick, but Misty crouched under it and pressed on Jam's calf, behind the knee, and the thigh. Before Jam could react, Misty pressed on Jam's sides with her two forefingers, causing her to hold her sides and let out a "Hey!" In that instant, Misty whirled behind Jam and pressed on the same points as the other legs, and made sure to extend it by pressing on three different points on Jam's spine: Lower, mid and neck.

In the waiting room with the rest of the fighters, Ash stared at Misty in confusion. "What the heck is she doing? Her attacks are so weak, and it looks like she's dancing more than fighting. Has she lost it?"

"No. This battle is already won. Just watch, you'll be surprised." Satoshi watched the battle with a curious expression. To think Misty already learned Kasumi's special fighting technique and effectively use it was both shocking and frightening. He could no longer call Misty weak at this stage.

With Misty and Jam, the brunette was growing infuriated with Misty's strange battling. "Alright, I had enough of this nonsense!" Jam bellowed, spinning to face Misty. "What do you think you're do—" Once Misty forcefully strike Jam's solar plexus with her palm, Jam felt her entire body lock up! She couldn't move a single inch! "Ack! What…what did you do to me?" She cried, only able to move her head.

"Did you play with dolls when you were younger?" Misty asked out of the blue.

"Uh…yeah. What does that have to do with this battle?"

"Absolutely everything. With the pressure points I've manipulated, you've become my new doll. This battle is over, but before I go…" Misty moved Jam's limps to certain positions, and when the limps were placed in the right spots, they remained there against Jam's will. Jam was situated so one of her hands was on her hips and the other was flashing the victory sign. Misty stood directly next to her and mimicked the action. "And the victory goes to me!" Misty declared enthusiastically, winking at the cameras taking pictures.

Jam sighed in defeat. She couldn't move a muscle. "This is humiliating…"

Violet stepped up to Misty and raised her hand high. "And the winner for today's round is…MISTY WATERFLOWER!"

Ash, watching the now finished battle, was stumped. "Wha….what just happened?"

"That's the Hyoushi Renge, or in your language, the Rhythm Lotus style, Kasumi's special fighting technique. The name, you see, comes from the fact that Kasumi loved flowers. Her favorite is the Aqua Lotus flower, a very rare plant that only grows in Raikeiza. Flowers have locomotion. It's a basic function flowers have where they move in a certain way with the help of the wind. In Misty's case, she's applying her own locomotion to her body by started moving in a rhythm and making her body move without even thinking about it. While doing so, she can concentrate on attacking the enemy without worrying about how to dodge an attack. But…the secret is in her attacks. Everyone has a type of energy flow in their bodies, along with our blood. Misty pressed on key pressure points which would effectively stop the flow. However, in this battle, Misty disabled Jam's control over her muscles and stiffened it, effectively turning Jam into her personal puppet. After a good punch in the chest, the blood flow accelerated and caused the muscle functions to stiffen and cease. It's a very difficult style to learn."

"Wow…Misty learned all of that in five days? Amazing…" Ash was stunned. He didn't know too much about what Satoshi said, but pressure points and learning such a complex style would take normal people many months, even years, to master. He knew Misty was great, but now he held a lot more respect for her.

Misty ran back to the waiting room, clearing the stage for the next round. "Hey Ash, did you see me out there?"

"Yeah! You were awesome!"

Misty flushed modestly, rubbing the back of her head. "Well…I was pretty cool out there. I was a little nervous with the crowd at first."

"Me too, especially with the way the crowd didn't like me at first. I kinda wish Brock was here to see us in action though…"

"Did someone say my name?" The said breeder inquired, patting Ash's shoulder.

"BROCK!" Ash and Misty cried in surprised.

"It's been awhile! Sorry I haven't seen you guys for so long. I've been training a lot and didn't get time to see ya." Brock apologized. The two took note of how Brock looked a little different. His muscles were very well toned, and he had white wrappings around his forearm and palm.

Misty sighed, feeling relieved. "At least you're alright. We've been worried about you."

"Yeah, I know, I know. These two wouldn't leave me alone." Brock pointed to the two people behind him.

"What's up?" Wes greeted cheerfully.

"I still can't believe I was talked into this…" Brendan sighed. He never liked pointless battles, unlike Wes.

"Um, you two are Brendan and Wes, right?" Ash asked, pointing at them.

"Yep, that's us! My brother and I are gonna enter this tournament and win." A small growl escaped Brendan's lips, but Wes waved it off. "Anyway, you two did really good out there. Nice moves!" Wes flashed Ash and Misty a thumbs up and wink.

"Your styles were very original, that much I'll admit. But, you'll need more than that to take us three on." Brendan informed with a smirk.

"Ooh, I get it now! You guys have been training Brock the entire time! It's no wonder he never showed up!" Ash suddenly grabbed Brock's shirt and shook him vibrantly. "Do you realize what I've been through since you left? There was no one who could cook, and I mean NO ONE!"

"What do you mean no one? I can cook very well!" Misty argued heatedly.

Ash pointed to Misty while staring at Brock with eyes of despair. "You left me with the human plague you call a chef and expect me to actually live in one piece? Had I actually attempted to swallow the nuclear sludge, I wouldn't be standing here right now! Have you no mercy on me?"

"Don't talk about me like that!" Misty yelled furiously.

"Hahaha! It looks like you two are having fun! Just like me and my brother!" Wes patted Brendan roughly on the back, laughing gleefully.

Brendan's curled fist trembled violently. 'Better hope we don't get paired against each other, Wes…' He thought angrily.

"Alright, if I can have your attention once again!" The fighters turned to face Lily once again. "The next match up will be Brock Slate and Edmond Honda. Will these two fighters please step forward and follow me!"

"Alright, I get a shot! Wish me luck!" Brock said, giving Ash and Misty the thumbs up.

"Hah, this puny little man is my opponent? This match will be over swiftly!" A very large Japanese man laughed boisterously. The sumo wrestler had red streaks of paint on his face and something resembling a blue-striped towel draped around his waist. He towered over Brock, who looked fairly small compared to the titan.

"I wouldn't be talking so quick. Punching bags are big targets, and you're only making yourself bigger." Brock smirked as he looked Edmond in the eyes, filled with confidence.

"Hmph, you talk big for a scrawny little man. We'll see who laughs last in the arena." The ground vibrated with each step the sumo took towards the arena. Brock followed Edmund and Lily towards the stage.

In the main stage area, Daisy started speaking for the crowd. "Alright ladies and gentleman, let's get started with the next one! Our first fighter is actually the second strongest sumo wrestler in the world, renowned for his brute strength. Here all the way from Japan, let's give it up for EDMUND HONDA!" The crowd roared as Edmund made his way to the arena. "Edmund's opponent is also well known for his status! Unfortunately, it's only as a womanizer. Please give a warm welcome for the family man with fist of steel, BROCK SLATE!"

'Sheesh, could my introduction be any worse?' Brock thought wryly, walking onto the stage. He noticed a lot of glares from the girls in the crowds, a few familiar faces he flirted with (and failed) in the past. This only made him more apprehensive.

Once the two fighters were on stage, Violet approached the two fighters. "Alright, round 3 - Edmund Honda versus Brock Slate! Fighters ready…?" Once again, she ran off the stage to give the fighters space. "FIGHT!"

(Honda's stage – Street Fighter)

Edmund charged towards Brock with incredible force, almost enough to damage the stage with each step. "Prepare to be squashed!" He yelled threateningly, raising his hand to strike. When Edmund swung down his heavy fist, Brock used one of his arms to block the attack and countered with a powerful punch to the stomach. Gasping for air, Edmund stumbled back. Edmund recovered and performed a straight with his fist, only for Brock to smack it and throw a thunderous thrust punch at the sumo wrestler's shoulder. This continue for several seconds, as Edmund would throw an attack, be parried and receive a single, devastating hit from Brock. With each attack countered, Brock took a step forward, leading Edmund out of the ring.

After being countered enough, E. Honda decided to use a move advanced move. "Eat this! 100 hand slaps!" Taking the offensive, he stampeded forward while sending a flurry of palm strikes at Brock. The breeder could only smirk victoriously as he blocked every single hit with ease. Just to make the giant sumo furious, he made sure to do it with only one hand.

"If you want me to actually break a sweat, you might want to do 900 more hand slaps!" Brock taunted, motioning the giant to attack him.

Edmund's face grew red with anger. "Why you little…! SUMO HEADBUTT!"

"Wha…!"

_SMASH!_

"Augh!" Brock received a direct hit from E. Honda's flying headbutt attack, sending him soaring. Landing roughly, Brock received moderate damaged, but recovered almost instantly. 'Man…that was took me by surprise…but that gives me an idea….' Taking the knowledge granted to him by Wes, he was going to put it to good use. "HEY FATASS! THANKS FOR PROVING THAT PIGS REALLY CAN FLY!"

Edmund's jaw dropped. "What did you just call me…?"

In the waiting room, Ash and Misty's eyes were widened dramatically as their jaws hung open. "Since when did Brock use such bad language?" They thought about it for a moment and then turned to glare at Wes, as did Brendan.

Wes noted the dirty looks he was getting. "…What?"

Back on the arena, if looks could kill, Brock would be a pile of ash at the moment. "How dare you insult me? I shall destroy you! SUMO SMASH!" E. Honda jumped high in the air and started freefalling at a dangerous speed. Even Brock with his new strength couldn't block such an attack, but he had another means of attacking…

_SMASH!_

Brock barely dodged the attack as the sumo broke through the platform and ended up under the arena. The crowd looked on with shock and anticipation. Both fighters were both powerful and skilled. It was amazing how well Brock was holding up against the monstrosity of a man. Brock snickered lightly as he saw Honda's hand reach the hole he made. The sumo was going to be in for a big surprise.

"Grr…you are on my last nerve! Next time, I won't miss!" Honda growled, emerging out of the platform. Once he was on his feet, he heard everyone in the audience gasp in horror. The man blinked, wondering what was so shocking. Many of the people were covering their faces, blinded by what they saw. Suddenly, the giant Japanese man felt something strange. "Who turned up the AC? I feel a draft."

Brock started snickering a little more. "Why don't you look down and see for yourself?"

"Hm?" When Edmund looked down, his eyes widened in surprise.

His towel was gone!

"I'm guessing you're looking for this?" Brock flashed the blue-stripped towel at Honda, who was feeling very embarrassed.

"Give it back!" Honda cried, trying pathetically to cover himself the best he could.

"I got a better idea…" Brock started winding up the towel, a sinister look on his face. "I would start running if I were you…"

Edmund took a step back, a look of sheer terror on his face. "Oh no…"

"Oh yes…"

"Oh no…!"

"Oh yes…!" Brock started dashing towards the naked sumo.

"OH NO!"

_SNAP! SNAP! SNAP!_

"OW! OUCH! STOP IT!" Honda yelped, getting chased by Brock. The sumo's heavyweight only made him even more susceptible to the barrage of stings. The crowd could only either laugh or watch in surprise as the second strongest sumo wrestler in the world was quickly reduced to a naked man receiving the wrath of the dreaded towel. Ash, Misty and Brendan sweat-dropped massively, unlike Wes, who found it to be very funny. It was such an embarrassing way for something to be used against you.

"Say your prayers!" Brock yelled, increasing his speed.

"Alright, alright, I give! Just stop popping me!" E. Honda hid behind Violet, who was very disgusted by the fact a fat naked man was holding onto her.

"EW! This is SO gross!" Violet shuddered, shrugging off the helpless man. To quickly avoid getting held onto again, she darted to where Brock was and raised his hand. "And the winner, no matter how strange a victory, is BROCK SLATE!" There weren't much applause, for most of the audience was still shocked with what they saw. Most of the younger minds would be mentally scarred for the rest of their lives.

Back in the waiting room, Brock rushed back in his friends with a proud smile on his face. "Hey guys! Did you see how cool I was out—"

_SLAM!_

"Ugh!" Brock's face was planted into the ground thanks to Misty's infamous mallet.

"How dare you say such bad words in public? And since when did you get so mean and aggressive? Do you have any idea how many impressionable kids are watching?" Misty shrieked as she continuously stomped on Brock.

"I'll admit…Brock really has changed within the last few days." Ash turned to Wes, tossing him a confused stare. "Just what did you guys do to him?"

Brendan scratched his head in thought. "Well, each of us pretty much trained him for a day. I guess Wes decided to slightly tweak his personality a bit…unfortunately."

"I don't see what I did wrong. I just gave him a backbone." Wes defended.

Ash's shoulders slumped. "I think the only thing you gave him was a bad mouth…"

"Um…excuse me, may I please get your attention?" Lily requested. "Um…due to the last match, the arena has been temporarily put out of order, so for now, you may relax until we've made the necessary repairs. It shouldn't take too long. Thanks for your patience!" With that, she left to meet up with the rest of her sisters.

Ash, along with Misty and Brock, walked over to one of the benches and plopped down. "Whew, it'll be nice to have a break." Ash sighed.

"Definitely. That Jam girl got some good hits on me." Misty sat besides Ash, followed by Brock, Wes and Brendan.

"You guys totally rocked the house out there! I mean, I knew Brock would win for sure, but you two were way cool too!" Wes praised.

"I agree. Very impressive you two were." Brendan said, speaking to Ash and Misty.

Ash, though he liked the compliments, had something else on his mind. "Hey, Brendan, Wes, why are you two in this tournament, and where's Gary and the others?"

"Well, Ritchie doesn't like getting into fights, and I don't want to risk putting Rui in any danger. As for Gary, as he stated, he doesn't feel like humiliating you in public." Wes answered.

Ash coiled his fist in fury. "That Gary…! Just wait until I get my hands on him!"

"As for why we're in this tournament, I always like a good brawl, so I thought "Why not?". Also…" Wes wrapped his arm around Brendan's shoulder and pulled him close. "I thought this was the perfect way for us brothers to bond!"

Brendan pushed himself away from Wes, scowling. "Fighting, for one, is not what I would consider to be a good way of bonding. And for the 1 millionth time…WE'RE NOT BROTHERS!"

"Ah, ah, ah! Deny it all you want, but you can't change facts." Wes tutted, wagging his finger at Brendan.

Brendan's eyebrow twitched in frustration. "There are no facts to change!"

Misty laughed at their antics. "You two seem to be pretty good friends."

"Yep! We're so close, we've become brothers!" Wes said proudly.

Brendan didn't share Wes's sentiments. "If that's what you call being a good friend, I would rather have enemies…"

"Hey, could I ask you two a serious question?" Misty asked. Brendan and Wes nodded, waiting for her to continue. "Why did you two join Team Nova?"

Wes sat back on the bench and crossed his legs, staring upward to reminisce. His face was serious. "Years back, I used to be a part of an evil organization in the Orre region known infamously as Team Snagem."

"Wait a minute, I've heard of them before!" Ash exclaimed in surprise. "Even though it's smaller than Team Rocket, they used to be just as fierce and had the same goals. I've also heard they were disbanded thanks to…wait a second…!"

"Correct. The two people who took them down were Rui and I." Wes finished, receiving surprised stares from Ash, Misty and Brock. "Anyway, I used to be a part of that organization long ago. That is, until I realized how wrong it was. I immediately escaped and took this thing with me." He stroked the metal armguard on his right arm. "This is the "Snag machine", and with it, you can capture Pokémon that normally belong to other trainers. It was truly a double-edge sword. It could either be used for good or evil. Fortunately, with the help of Rui, we managed to defeat them and their partnering organization, Team Cipher. But…after that was accomplished, I didn't feel…complete. I felt I needed to atone for what I've did in the past. That's when I found Team Nova, or rather, they found me. I possessed something they wanted, and they had something I wanted. With Rui, I told her to stay with her family in Orre, but she kept insisting that she would come along. Heh, I remember even having to go as far as leaving her behind without telling her. Boy was she pissed. A few months later, I completed all the tests and training with flying colors, soon earning a rank among the elite. I felt I've really contributed not only to Team Nova, not only to the world, but for me…and Rui."

"It seems like you and Rui really care about each other. That' so sweet…" Misty praised, getting starry eyed.

A small smile appeared on Wes's face. "Yeah, and this was apparent soon, after joining the elite. Apparently, a girl close to my age managed to not only ace the training and tests, but proved to be the best female Team Nova member in a long time. She was immediately sent to join the top elite of Team Nova. Imagine my surprise when I found out this little girl wonder was actually Rui. When she saw my face, man, let's just say if looks could kill, I would've been way below six feet under. We kinda got into an argument and Rui gave me two choices: Either she stays with me or she goes back home and never speaks to me again." Wes sat forward with his arms resting on his knees. He wore a calm and complacent expression. "I asked her to give me two days to think about it. In those two days, the only thoughts on my mind were what would be best for Rui. I could've had her tag along with me, but she would be in danger. If she was to go home, she would be safe, but will probably hate my guts for the rest of my life. It was the toughest decision I've ever had to make.

But…something strange happened. On my bed was a video tape that read "Rui's training". I didn't know who left it there, but I decided to check it out. Once I saw the video…I was sold. Every minute of her training was intense, but Rui had the most determined face I've ever seen! If you saw it, you could tell nothing could stop her. There was something she always told herself. It was as if those were her motivation words, because whenever she said it, her stamina would return with double the force. It was those words that just got to me more than anything. It was five simple, but powerful words: "I have to find him". That's when I decided, I can't possibly leave someone like that behind. She went through so much trouble in the first place, and I know for a fact if she went home, she would wind up coming back for me. And until this day, I'm glad I made the decision to keep her by my side. That's also another reason I'm with Team Nova, so I can help create a world were Rui would be safe and happy."

Ash and Misty where surprised with Wes's story. They truly underestimated him. "You're cooler than I thought, Wes." Ash complimented.

"Heh, thanks As—hey, wait a minute! You thought I was uncool before?" Wes tossed Ash a scrutinizing look. Ash simply laughed it off nervously.

"Wes may seem like a pushover and an idiot, which he is, but he's someone who you don't want to underestimate." Brendan stated.

"Hey, hey, hey, watch it with the insults!" Wes yelled.

"Hey, Brendan, what's your reason for joining Team Nova?" Ash asked, interrupting the small scale argument.

"My reasons isn't as long and drawn out as Wes's. The only reason I'm here is because I have no where else to go. Besides, had I actually left, Wes would never stop annoying the hell out of me about it." Brendan sighed.

"I wouldn't be so annoying if you would just admit that we're brothers." Wes told him.

Brendan grew infuriated. "For the last time…!"

"My, look at what we got here." A voice said out of the blue. The gang turned to see two people approaching them. It was the same two people Ash spotted earlier. Unfortunately, Ash got bad vibes from both of them, especially the white haired man with the blue visor.

"Who are you two?" Brendan inquired, casting a cautious state at them.

The white haired man held up his hands defensively. "There's no need for such hostility. I feel we are all just simple fighters here for our own objectives. Isn't that right, Zao?" The red eyed man glanced back at the emotionless man with only one visible yellow eye. Zao didn't visibly respond in the least. "I was hoping maybe we could have a little _chat_ before the bouts continue. After all, there is plenty of time to kill."

Ash narrowed his eyes. There was something sickeningly sweet about the man's voice which crept him out to the max. "What do you mean by a little chat? Who are you?"

The man rolled his eyes as he shrugged. "How rude. Don't you know it's proper to introduce yourself before asking others?"

"You heard my name loud and clear during the first match." Ash's voice was firm and to the point.

"Hm, it looks like you got me. Haha, silly me. Well, I suppose it would be fair to give you my name." The man bowed respectfully while tossing the gang an all too friendly smirk. "You may call me Crisis. Pardon for the crude name, my parents were fond of unusual jokes."

"Why are you here talking to us?" Wes asked roughly, having a laser-like focus on Crisis.

Crisis looked at Wes in faked surprise. "Well, someone woke up on the wrong side of the coffin-oops! Did I say that out loud? I meant bed. So sorry, such a bad habit of mine." He waved it off playfully.

"You trying to start something?" Wes growled, preparing to fight.

Crisis looked annoyed. "Meh, don't act like such a child. I don't feel like spanking such a naughty little boy right now. You're not worth my time." He turned to Brendan and held his chin. "But you are well worthy of my attention, little 'Brendan'." For reasons unknown, Crisis made sure to emphasis Brendan's name.

"Son of a…!" Wes shot out of the bench and went to punch Crisis, who had an evil glint in his eye as he saw the attack approaching him.

"That's enough Crisis." Zao spoke. His voice was calm, but powerful enough to slice through the air like a hot knife through butter. "Don't you think you've fooled around enough? Remember why we're here."

"Ah phooey. You're such a stiff. I was only getting myself acquainted with these fellow youngsters. Oh well, until next we meet I guess." Crisis tossed Brendan a wink before leaving, which sent chills down Brendan's spine. If anyone disliked Crisis at the moment, it was Brendan.

Zao started walking away, but before getting out of sight, he and Ash's eyes locked. A miniature war took place between their gazes. However, once Zao's eyes narrowed the slightest, Ash gasped and fell on his hands and knees, trembling violently. Misty and Brock, who was able to see spirits, saw Satoshi have a look of great terror in his eyes. Whatever Ash felt, Satoshi felt too.

"Ash, are you alright?" Brock inquired urgently, helping Ash to his feet. The look on Ash's face truly disheartened everyone.

"Th…that man…Zao…do not underestimate him…!" Ash started breathing in shudders. "If you fight him…he won't hesitate to kill you. I saw just a tiny amount of his killing intent, but it was the scariest thing I've ever seen. No, it was beyond that. It felt as though my very spirit was being torn limb for limb, and the worst thing about it was…he wasn't even trying. As a matter of fact, he was holding a great deal back. I…I'm not sure I can face him…"

Misty gave Ash a very concerned look. This wasn't like Ash at all. "Ash, what are you…?"

"I know exactly what he's talking about." Wes said, clenching his fist. "Those two guys…they aren't normal, not in the least. That Crisis guy, even though he looked playful and innocent, he is definitely cold blooded in every sense imaginable. I don't know who scares me more, Crisis or Zao. I looked into Zao's eyes for less than an instant. My hands are still shaking…"

"It's safe to assume they aren't normal. Should any of us fight them, we can't hold back anything. I have a bad feeling about them." Brendan grimaced, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Alright everyone, sorry for the wait!" Lily yelled out. "Will the next two fighters, Wes and Senel Coolidge, please come this way!"

Wes slapped his fist together in excitement. "Oh yeah! It's my turn! Let's see who my opponent is!" He looked left and right as he walked up to Lily.

"I'm right here." The man named Senel said. The blue eyed lad looked around 17 years old and had wild, unrestrained white hair. On his face was a series of black markings consisting of a diamond shape mark under his right eye and another diamond in the middle of a ring on his forehead. He also had unusual white clothes, worn dark teal shorts and white, green boots.

One look at Senel and Wes gasped. "This…can't be…!" He glanced at Brendan as he pointed to Senel. "Brother, look! I think he might be a long lost brother of ours!"

_SMACK!_

"Will you stop bringing other people into that nonsense of yours?" Brendan reprimanded, punching the tell-tale Wes over the head. Senel was about to question the topic when Brendan sighed and shook his head. "It's a long story. Just have a good fight."

"O…kay…" Senel blinked. After Wes gave his armguard to Brendan to hold, he and Senel made their way to the stage with Lily.

In the main area, there was a tough plate of metal placed over the arena so it wouldn't break as easily. Once again, Daisy began the introductions. "Sorry for the wait everyone! Now that the arena's repaired, let's get started with the next match! On the right hand corner is a skilled martial artist with a passion for close combat! Coming all the way from…err…Werites Beacon? Let's give a hand to the super cool, SENEL COOLIDGE!" The crowd gave a great welcome to the alliance marine, who held a cool expression on his face. "And in the left hand corner, this kid is a legend in the Orre region for completely decimating an evil organization. Let's welcome the man with the fist of fury, WES!"

"Hehe, this is gonna be fun!" Wes was brimming with excitement as he walked onto the Arena. Violet stepped up to start the match. "If you two already know the rules, let's get this party started! Round 4 – Wes versus Senel Coolidge. Ready…?" Once again, she ran away from the stage to avoid getting hit. "FIGHT!"

(Battle artist – Tales of Legendia)

Senel jumped back and made the first strike. "Demon Fist!" With this fist, he threw a shock wave trailing across the ground.

"Whoa!" Wes cart wheeled out of the way, almost taken by surprised. 'Interesting, this guy definitely got some cool moves. I better make sure not to hold back.' He and Senel both dashed forward to exchange fists. Wes threw a punch at Senel, but the skilled fighter blocked the attack and parried with his own fist attack. Ducking to dodge it, Wes performed a low kick to trip up the white haired fighter. Senel saw it coming and jumped over it and above Wes.

"Talon Strike!" Senel yelled, stomping on Wes's shoulder then head before back flipping off him. Wes shook it off and stood up, but couldn't react to Senel's next move. "Wyrm Crush!" With great speed, he dashed towards Wes, did a four hit fist combo, and with the forth hit, uppercutted him in the air. While airborne, Wes recovered and attempted to land on his feet, but noticed that Senel wasn't done yet. "Swallow Dance!" Senel's body rotated as he jumped in the air and performed a series and aerial spin kicks. This time, Wes was well prepared for him, and with great precision, stepped onto each of Senel's kick attack, thereby countering it.

After landing, it was Wes's turn to go on the offensive. He ran at Senel with his fist raised, but unexpectedly, punch at the ground. Surprisingly, he punched with enough force to propel him towards Senel. "Serpent Sting!" He forward flipped in the air and slammed Senel's shoulder with the heel of his foot. Senel knocked Wes's foot upward, causing him to flip backwards and land on his feet.

"Demon Fist!" Senel wasn't planning on giving Wes anytime to rest.

"HA!" Wes slammed his fist at the shockwave and managed to cancel it out.

"Let's see you block this! Twin Demon Fist!" This time, Senel shot two shockwaves towards Wes. Wes crossed his arms defensively to block the barrage of shockwaves. He managed to defend against the first one, but the second one stunned him long enough for Senel to move in and attack. "Whirlwind Talon Blast!" First, Senel performed a powerful roundhouse kick to throw off Wes's guard. Then, he tossed an endless barrage of high-paced kicks at Wes's chest and stomach. To finish the move, he did another powerful kick, which knocked Wes on the ground. Before Wes could stand up, Senel grabbed his ankles. "Landslide!" With a spin, Senel lifted Wes and then slammed him hard on the ground.

"Ack!" Blood escaped Wes's lips as he coughed, lying on his back. His face was contorted in pain.

"Hey, you may be a skilled fighter, but you're no match for me. Forfeit before you get seriously injured, which I'm trying hard to avoid." Senel advised.

"A-agh…" Wes tried to get up, but it was tough to move without aching all over. His tired eyes glanced over at the crowd, and there, he saw Ritchie, Gary…and Rui. They were watching him. Rui had a fixed focus on him, silently praying he would win. Wes could tell this, and smiled. "Heh, sorry Senel, but no can do…" Slowly, Wes arisen to his feet, panting heavily.

'How…could he still stand after all of that? This guy is pretty tough, gotta give him that much.' Senel thought.

"Heh…you see…there's someone watching me…someone very important. If I was to lose so easily…I would never hear the end of it…" Gritting his teeth, one of Wes's arms was stretched downward while the other gripped tightly on the wrist. "You think…you're so special, don't you? With your fancy tricks and attacks. I'll admit you're a pretty cool guy, and your techniques rock. Unfortunately for you…" The arm he was holding onto started trembling as he cocked his hand so it formed a claw. Suddenly, a faint, amethyst glow covered Wes's hand. Wes looked up, a bold look of determination on his face. "I'm more special than YOU!" With a cry, he charged at Senel with his glowing hands raised.

"Twin Demon Fist!" Senel shot his dual shockwaves towards Wes at full power, unsure of what the bold teen was planning.

"Not this time!" With the glowing hand, Wes slapped away the two shockwaves as though they were nothing. This surprised Senel greatly, so much he couldn't defend against the attack in time. "HYPER BLADE!"

_SLASH!_

"Agh!" Senel barely stepped back in time. His chest caught a small graze from Wes's attack. It was slight, but there was a burnt singe on his chest, which was very painful.

'What on earth…?' Senel couldn't believe how painful the little graze was. Whatever the technique was, he couldn't underestimate it. He took on his battle pose. "Alright, it's time for round two!"

"Back at cha!" The fighters clashed again, exchanging expertly done moves with each other.

As time passed, the battle grew more intense with each second. Neither fighter would yield in their constant barrage of attacks. Within a few minutes, both fighters were on their last leg. Senel summed up his remaining strength in order to use his trump card. "Let's finish this! Climax mode!" Instantly, in Senel's vision, everything was enveloped in a dark blue hue. It was as though time froze only for him. He decided to use this time to get in more than enough hits to take Wes down.

In Wes's point of view, Senel was only a blur. For some reason, his body started taking damaging blows at an ungodly rate. Whatever Senel did, it gave him speed which time itself couldn't keep up with. 'Tch, if he thinks I can't keep up, he's wrong. Time to go all out…!" Wes used his remaining stamina to increase the light purple glow around his arm so it enveloped his entire body.

With Senel, he was landing hit after hit, hoping his climax mode would last long enough to take Wes down. He was about to land a powerful hit when Wes's hand caught it. Senel's eyes widened in astonishment. 'Impossible! He can keep up with the climax mode?'

"Perhaps you didn't hear me the first time I said it…" Wes leaned it with a dignified smirk. "I'm more special than you…!"

Outside the climax mode, no one could tell what was going on. Both fighters were mere blurs now, and no one could keep up. If anything was for certain, the person who emerged out of the climax mode standing would be the victor. In the stands, Rui wringed her hands nervously. 'I don't care who wins, but Wes, please be okay…'

In less then a few seconds, both fighters appeared in view, both of them facing against each other. The crowd was silent and the tension was high. A few second later, someone collapsed.

It was Senel.

Wes smirked. "Heh…I told you I was…special…" and then he collapsed shortly after.

The crowd was in shock. Violet went to check on the fighters' condition. "It's…a double knockout! Both Senel Coolidge and Wes are out!" She motioned a group of Nurse Joys to put the two fighters on stretchers and flee the scene, taking them to the nearby hospital. Rui immediately jumped out of her seat and followed the nurses. A group of people familiar to Senel followed as well.

With the fighters in the waiting room, Ash had been staring at the battle in wonder the entire time. Wes had put so much effort into the battle. He really wanted him to win. "Poor Wes. I'd hoped he would win."

"Don't worry about him. He'll be alright. Besides…" Brendan glanced at the corner of his eye as he saw Wes being carried out and Rui by his side. "…He has more than enough support already. Nothing to worry about."

"Okay, everybody, listen up!" Lily called out. "Will a Brendan Birch and Yugi Moto please follow me!"

"Looks like I'm up. I better get this over with." Brendan quirked his neck and stretched his arms.

"Good luck!" Ash and Misty wished.

"Hmph, I don't need luck. If anything, it looks like my opponent is the one who needs it." Brendan gestured the rather young kid with purple eyes and a strangely shaped, multi-colored hair. The boy was dressed in what looked like a blue school uniform and had a necklace with something resembling a gold pyramid with an odd eye insignia in the middle of it. The timid teenager approached Lily and glanced at Brendan, who shifted his glasses habitually.

"W-well, shall we have a good fight?" The boy asked politely.

Brendan gave the kid a long stare at the corner of his eye before snorting. "As long as you don't cry after getting hit, I don't care." Brendan walked ahead of Lily and Yugi to the waiting point. Lily eyed Brendan with slight disgust.

"Jeeze, rude much?" She sighed and gave Yugi a small smile. "Don't push yourself too hard kiddo. Just go out there and do your best. Now let's go." She led Yugi, who was feeling very apprehensive, to where Brendan was.

In the arena, the crowd had been in a murmur ever since the recent match. The tournament held a lot of talent and captured the attention of many people. The spectators were silenced as soon as Daisy's voice was heard speaking over the intercom. "If we can have your attention, we would like to get started with the next round! Our first fighter is ranked among one of the most intellectual minds of the world and is the grandson of the famous Professor Birch. No one has a guess as to how skilled he is, but we're gonna find out today. Please welcome the totally cool, calm, and collected, BRENDAN BIRCH!" Everyone applauded as Brendan stepped into view and onto the stage. His looks captured the attention of a lot of women in the audience. "Our next fighter is a world renowned duelist in an apparently very popular card game of Duel Monsters. Coming all the way from Domino City (wherever that is), please welcome the totally cute YUGI MOTO!" The crowd gave a hand to Yugi, who felt a both embarrassed and nervous as he go into position.

This time, Violet stood outside the ring to make the announcement. "Let's get this started! Round 5 – Brendan Birch versus Yugi Moto. Fighters ready…? FIGHT!"

'Oooh…I told Joey this wasn't a good idea. Hmph, toughen me up my behind! I mean look at this guy…!' Yugi noticed the annoyed expression on Brendan's face. It looked like he wanted to beat the pulp out of the little guy. This only made him more nervous. 'This guy is gonna mop the floor with me…!'

"Hey!" Brendan yelled, scaring the teen out of his thoughts. "Are you going to fight or sit there getting nervous?"

"Oh, um, sure." Yugi closed his eyes and placed his hands around his pyramid. "Alright, let's do this! YUGIOH!" The boy cried. He was engulfed in a bright yellow light. When the light dissipated, Yugi grew at least 3 feet taller, had sharper eyes, and had slightly different, tougher looking clothes. "Hm?" _Yugi_ looked around in wonder, unsure of what was going on. "Is this some kind of duel?"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Brendan yelled, pointing accusingly at _Yugi_. "What the hell was that? Hey, Violet! This guy just changed members in between a match! Isn't that against the rules?"

Violet blinked, confused. "…What are you talking about? I didn't notice anything strange."

Brendan's jaw dropped. "Didn't notice anything strange? HE JUST GREW THREE FEET TALLER! Doesn't that give you the slightest hint that something's wrong with this picture?"

Violet sighed. This was turning into a problem. "Look, we'll ask people of the audience for their opinion. If they vote that your claim is true, Yugi Moto will be disqualified. However, if they vote false, the match will continue without further argument, okay?"

Brendan nodded, fully confident about getting the cheater kicked out. 'I'm sure if the judge didn't see it, someone else must've. No one can be THAT blind. It's scientifically impossible.'

Violet gave Daisy, who was stationed inside the observation deck, the sign to start the voting process. In each of the seats, a keypad appeared. It had the words true and false written on it. The entire audience entered their responses, which was then sent to Daisy's location to analyze. Once completed, Daisy turned on the microphone to speak. "Okay, I have the votes. The results are unanimous. Yugi Moto has been voted NOT guilty for switching team members. The match will resume normally."

Brendan's face paled, turning white as a ghost. "IS EVERYONE HERE BLIND OR INSANE?"

"Sorry, but it's been decided. Now quit whining and start fighting." Violet demanded.

Brendan's shoulders slumped. "…Am I the only one who notices how wrong this is?" He cried despairingly.

Wit Ash, Misty, and Brock, they sweat-dropped fiercely. "We've noticed…" Though the spirit holders could tell what happened, they chose not to say anything about it. It was more fun that way…

In the arena, Brendan calmed himself down and narrowed his eyes at _Yugi_. "I don't know what your game is, but I'll be sure to wipe that cooled look off your face."

_Yugi_ smirked. "Are you sure? Don't go in over your head."

"Hmph, I'll be sure not too." With his hands behind his back, Brendan casually walked towards him.

"Hm? This is different." _Yugi_ thought aloud, confused with Brendan's battle approach. Staying defensive, Yami did the same as Brendan. Once the two were in front of each other, their eyes locked unflinchingly, not even blinking. The key to the battle would be the one with the most control and precision. 'Hmm…I have to admit, he is a very calculating opponent. I have to be careful with him.'

'This faker doesn't look too shabby. I have to make my moves count.' Brendan thought.

_ACHOO!_

The loud sneeze from one of the audience was the spark that started the battle.

(Your move – Music to duel by)

"HA!" The two shouted, throwing punching at a shocking rate. _Yugi_ dodged Brendan's strikes by mere centimeters and threw in a few of his own punches, blocked by Brendan's swift and calculating movements. The first attack to land was a fist to the chest by _Yugi_, causing Brendan to stumble back. _Yugi_ tossed a kick at him, but Brendan caught it and flipped him, causing him to fall face first. Luckily, _Yugi_ halted his fall by using his hands and rolled out of the way of Brendan's downward heel strike. Bouncing himself back to his feet, _Yugi_ dashed at Brendan's side and did a roundhouse kick. Predicting this, Brendan caught the foot and pushed him away, greatly throwing _Yugi_ off balance. Brendan used the open opportunity to run at _Yugi_. Unfortunately for him, _Yugi_ planned for this. The ninja star haired teen immediately regained his balance and captured Brendan's arm.

'Damn! He pulled off a feint!' Brendan thought grimly. With a toss, _Yugi_ spun him and sent him staggering towards the edge of the arena. Brendan attempted to get back on track, but _Yugi_ managed to counter his moves and keep him towards the edge of the arena.

"This is the end of the line!" With a palm strike to the chest, Brendan was sent flying off the arena and landed roughly on the ground outside.

"Brendan's out of the ring. He has until ten counts to get back in or he forfeits. 10…9…" Violet announced, keeping track.

'Grr…how troublesome. I can't believe I'm letting this guy beat me…!' Brendan thought angrily. One of the things he despised more than fighting is being humiliated. It looked like he would have to get just a little serious.

"8…7…6…5…"

"Had enough yet?" _Yugi_ asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hmph. I've slightly underestimated you, but I won't make that same mistake." Brendan took off his glasses and placed it in his pocket, smirking. "This time, you're going down!"

"4…3…2…1—AH!" Violet gasped. In the blink of an eye, Brendan disappeared and was now standing behind _Yugi_, who paled in surprise.

"Be careful when down talking an opponent. You never know what they can do when they're angry…" Brendan growled.

_Yugi_ started sweating nervously. This wasn't looking too good.

_POW! BAM! SMACK!_

_Yugi_ was being beaten left and right and never had a chance to fight back. Within a few minutes, _Yugi_ was heavily bruised. The look in Brendan's eyes was starting to cause him great fear and anxiety. Brendan picked up him and leered dangerously. "Do you think you can humiliate me and get away with it?"

_SMACK!_

The punch was powerful enough to not only knock him to the other side of the ring, but also unconscious. With that, _Yugi_ somehow shrunk back to his original size. Violet checked on the boy's condition. He was out cold. Doing her job as the referee, she went over to Brendan and raised his hand high. "And the winner for this match is Bren—hey!" She yelled, being that Brendan snatched his hand out of her grip.

"I'm not done yet." Brendan stormed over to Yugi, raised him by the scruff on his collar and shook him rapidly. "Wake up you half pint twerp! I'm not through with you!"

"Ugh…huh?" Yugi's innocent eyes opened, only to widen in fear. The look on Brendan's eyes was intense and violent.

"Hey! The match is already over! You won so stop picking on him!" Violet pleaded.

"Picking on him? I'm going to destroy him!" Brendan drew back his fist, only to be stopped by two teens a little older them him. One of them was a blonde wearing a green jacket, long blue jeans, and a white undershirt. The other was a brown haired man with brown, pointy hair, a tan coat, brown pants and shirt.

"Hey buddy, what's da big idea? Da lady said you won already, so leggo!" The blonde demanded.

At that moment, Brendan blinked, his expression changing immediately to confusion. He released and dropped Yugi absentmindedly. "…Huh? What happened?" Brendan asked unwittingly.

Once they noticed Brendan's body lax, they rushed to Yugi's aid. "Hey Yug, you alright?" The blonde man asked, helping him up.

"Ow…Joey? Tristan? What happened…?"

"I dunno, but that guy just went ballistic on you a minute ago. If we didn't jump in, you coulda got hurt big time. Which reminds me…" Joey tossed an angry glare at Brendan, who was walking back to the fighter's waiting area, still confused about his earlier actions. "Hey ya big jerk! Ain't ya gonna apologize, or are ya so full of ya self that you ain't got da time?"

Brendan stopped and glanced at Joey at the corner of his ruby eyes. The immediate look in his eyes sent shivers down Joey's spine, causing the blonde to clam up nervously. After the moment passed, Brendan looked forward, but didn't move yet. "I'm…sorry about that. I'm not sure what came over me. Please don't consider me to be that kind of person. It was just…a momentary lapse of composure." With that, Brendan continued onward.

Joey, still confused, shrugged it off and lifted Yugi back to his feet. "Gee, wasn't that a 10 on da creepy scale." He commented.

"Yeah…the weirdest thing of all was his eyes…" Yugi said, still feeling weak.

"Definitely. That guy looked mad. I wouldn't want to meet him in a dark alley." Tristan shivered at the thought.

Yugi shook his head. "No, I mean his eyes, as in, the color of them. For that one brief moment…his eyes were pink."

Joey scratched his head in confusion. "Wha? You sayin he changed eye color or something? Talk about weird…"

With Brendan, when he approached Ash, Misty and Brock, they rushed towards him worriedly. "Hey Brendan, are you…alright? We saw what happened…" Ash asked hesitantly.

Brendan covered his face with his hand, feeling muddled. "I'm not sure what happened. All I know is that I had this feeling ever since we met Crisis. But…the thought of Yugi defeating right then infuriated me like never before. I can't explain it, but it felt as though those emotions were mine, but at the same time, they weren't mine…"

Brock crossed his arms thoughtfully. "I've known you for only a short while, but you never struck me as the kind of guy who's quick to anger. Even then, that was taking it too far. And you say you had this strange feeling inside you when you met with Crisis?"

"I can't just say he was somehow involved. All I know is that the feeling came to existence around that time."

"Will you be alright?" Misty asked worriedly.

"…Yeah, I'll be fine. The feeling's gone now. Instead of worrying about me, go ahead and check on Wes for me. I want to see if he's alright."

Ash was a little confused. "But I thought you said he would be alright with Rui with him."

"I know, but I would feel better if I had someone tell me how he was doing. Besides, I want to analyze the rest of the competition, especially Zao and Crisis. Is there anyone you want me to concentrate on?"

Ash thought about it, then nodded. "Yeah. Though I haven't seen him yet, there's someone named Soma in this tournament. Can you get some info on him for me?"

Brendan nodded. "Sure. Just go ahead. I'll catch up when the tournament is done for the day." With that settled, Ash, Misty and Brock left for the hospital where Wes was stationed. When they were gone, Brendan glanced at Crisis at the corner of his eye. Another feeling he noticed before aroused again. It was something Brendan found even more mysterious than Zao and Crisis.

It he felt as though he had seen him before.

* * *

And that's the end of Chapter 13. I know it's been awhile, but bare with me here! School is a lot of hard work, and so is work itself! Hopefully, my next update won't take as long. Stay tuned for some my tournament-goodness. Don't forget to review and lemme know your thoughts on this. 

Disclaimer: I do NOT own anything related to the following list, their respective creators do: "Pokémon", "Yugioh", "Cowboy Bebop", "Guilty Gear", "Street Fighter", and "Tales of Legendia". Also, I do not own any of the songs.

Claimer: I DO own Crisis, Zao, and Soma, for they are my own creations. I also own this story.


	14. Prelude to glory! part 2

**_Chapter 14 – Prelude to glory – part 2_**

Cerulean City Hospital

Sometime after leaving the Cerulean Battle Arena, Ash, Misty and Brock had visited Wes, who rested in a room on the third floor. After explaining what happened in his match, Wes wasn't too thrilled.

"I kinda figured something like that happened. I'd hoped I would get to fight one of you guys." Wes sighed with disappointment.

"It would've been a great fight, but maybe we could just have a Pokémon battle later to make up for it." Ash suggested, trying to bring up Wes's spirits.

Wes thought about it before responding. "Yeah, I don't see why not. It'll be better to bruise your pride than your body anyway." He shrugged.

"Hmph, we'll see about that!" Ash huffed, his competitiveness getting the best of him.

"Hey Wes, I've been meaning to ask you something. What was that strange ability you used earlier against Senel?" Misty asked. Ash and Brock thought it was a good question.

Wes looked nervous at this. "Well…I technically wasn't supposed to use that attack, nor could I tell you…at least not now. It's confidential information."

"It's not so much of a secret now, considering everyone saw it." Ash noted, giving Wes a look.

"Hey, shut up! Everyone else was using cool techniques, so I wanted to too." Wes made a pout, puffing his cheeks stubbornly. "And I shoulda won that match..." Just then, he remembered something. "Ah, speaking of which, did you see my brother's match? How did he do?"

"Brendan? Err…" Ash, Brock and Misty exchanged questionable looks. Ash decided to fill in. "Well, he won his match, but…something strange happened to him…"

"Something strange? Like what?" Wes pressed.

"Well…during the fight, he got a lot more aggressive than usual…that, and for a small moment, his eyes had a flash of pink…"

Wes's eyes widened with alarm. "Are you serious…?" If it was what Wes thought it was, it was definitely trouble. "I should probably check on him." He was about to get up when Rui stayed him.

"You're still injured. Don't go making your condition worse."

Wes leaned in to whisper. "You know as well as I do what this means. My brother might be in trouble…"

Rui whispered as well. "Ash said it was pink, so there's no immediate danger. There's still time. Don't worry. Please rest…for me…?"

Wes really wanted to protest, but he could never down a please from Rui. He merely grumbled as he lay back onto his bed. "Fine…"

"Looks like someone's got the magic touch." Misty joked, winking at Rui. Rui got the message and winked back. Brock and Ash were confused while Wes had a gloomy look on his face.

"Moving on, if you guys meet my brother later, could you tell him to visit me?"

"No need, I'm right here." Brendan announced, waving haphazardly.

"Brother! I'm so touched that you came to visit me!" Wes cried dramatically.

Brendan shot him a look. "Actually, I was hoping you would be a vegetable, but I guess we can't have everything…"

"…That was cold…"

"Anyway, how's your condition…not that I care or anything, but just so I could tell Gary and Ritchie…" Brendan added quickly, avoiding direct eye contact.

"I'll be fine in no time! I'll be able to see the matches tomorrow. But brother…please, avenge me in the matches tomorrow! For the sake of our brotherly bond!"

Brendan gave Wes a blank stare. "…You enjoy annoying me endlessly, don't you?"

"Sorry to interrupt your…whatever, but I was hoping if maybe you could fill us in about the tournament?" Ash requested.

"Oh right, those guys. I should definitely tell you guys about that. First off, there's the fighter Zao. His fight was quick and to the point. 5 seconds barely went by before he wiped the floor with his opponent. He's definitely a powerhouse to look out for. The second was based on Ash's request, Soma. That guy doesn't know the meaning of holding back. He somehow managed to engulf his attacks with fire and crush his opponent with brutal attacks. That's another guy to watch out for. And then…there's Crisis. The only thing more annoying than his looks is his mysterious attack."

"Mysterious attack? What did he do?" Misty asked.

Brendan shrugged. "As soon as the fight started, Crisis gripped his opponent's forehead. The next second, his opponent was unable to fight. I have a bad feeling about what he did, but that's beside the point. If any of us fights those three guys, it'll be best not to take them lightly. Prepare accordingly."

"Tell me about it…" Ash mumbled under his breath, remembering his defeat by the Fire Vizier's hands. "Did you happen to think of anyway to fight them, especially Soma?"

Brendan shook his head. "No, not yet. I should be able to think of one by tomorrow, so for now, go ahead and rest for the day."

"Good idea. I can get in some extra training for tomorrow. See ya later!" Ash headed out the door with Brock and Misty.

Brendan laughed to himself once he saw Ash leave. "Well, how do you like that? Not a sign of fear or anxiety. He's totally psyched to fight any of them." He glanced back at Wes, who held a serious gaze. "Wes?"

"Ash told me what happened to you earlier. Don't tell me it's time already?"

"No, it's not. I'm fine, really."

"Don't lie to me brother, I know you better than you might think. You're _hungry_…aren't you?"

Brendan's eyes went from Wes's eyes to Rui's. She also felt the same way. "I…I just don't like doing that. You know how I feel about that sort of thing…especially to…to…"

Rui placed a comforting hand around Brendan's trembling ones. "It's okay Brendan. I'll be fine, honest. Now come on…please?" She pleaded.

Brendan felt his will being torn apart. It hurt him to do such a thing. "But Rui, I…"

"Brother, please do it. We're both care about you, you know that." Wes said.

"I know that, but…" Brendan looked at the two once more, and then sighed depressingly. "…Fine…"

Cerulean City Gym – Ash and Brock's Room

It was well into the night. Ash lay in his comfortable bed, staring into the ceiling. The tournament has turned from one surprise to another. Brock and Misty had improved greatly over the past week, greater than he had expected. Then again, they are great gym leaders, so it shouldn't have been too much of a surprise. It made Ash wonder if he would be able to beat them if he fought Misty or Brock. But then, he didn't use his spirit-sync yet, nor did his friends. It was still a mysterious as to who was the strongest.

Ash groaned, unable to get to sleep. It would be embarrassing to lose a match because he couldn't sleep early enough, but his mind was still going on with several different thoughts. He was far too restless.

"Huh…?" Ash noticed someone passing by his door. There was a flash of orange as the person passed. "Misty…?" He stealthily rolled out of his bed and followed Misty. Given he had nothing better to do, he might as well find out what his best friend was up to.

After some stalking, Ash followed Misty as she went outside. Ash flattened himself to a wall and crept along the edges as Misty turned a corner. He was half way there when Satoshi awoken from his slumber to find his host following Misty. _"Ugh, I was hoping to never see the day you stoop down to Takeshi's level and stalk girls, and it's Misty of all people!" _Satoshi groaned.

"It's not like that! I couldn't sleep, so I decided to see what Misty was doing so late in the night." Ash whispered.

"_Hmm…I suppose that is an interesting topic. Might as well see what she's up to."_ Satoshi said. Ash continued his way until he was at the corner. He stopped to peer over the corner and see what Misty was doing.

With Misty, she stood in the middle of the grass patch behind the gym. She took a deep breath and released. "Kasumi, are you ready? We need to prepare for tomorrow."

"_I'm ready, and I agree. Tomorrow's foes will prove even stronger than the ones we've faced today."_ Kasumi agreed.

"Alright, let's go guys!" Misty released her Corsola, Politoed, and Starmie. The three Pokémon cheered once they noticed their trainer. "I'm going to need your help for this one you guys. Are you up for it?" All the Pokémon gave respective grunts, confirming that they were more than ready. "Okay…here we go!" Misty clasped her hands together, channeling Kasumi's light energy. "Spirit-sync!" In a flash, Misty spirit-synced with Kasumi. "Alright guys, let's get to work! Corsola, Pin Missile!" At the call, Corsola shot a swarm of thin needles at Misty.

Misty dodged, side stepped, and maneuvered around the needles with a combination of grace and speed. Ash's eyes could barely keep up. Misty was just warming up. "Let's kick it up! Politoed, Water Gun! Starmie, Swift!" The three Pokémon surrounded Misty and started firing their respective attacks. _'Okay, time to test my new attack. I hope it works…'_ Misty spun several times while extending both of her arms in opposite directions. "Barrier!" Her hands left visible traces of a transparent yellow wall. The wall of light extended in length as Misty started forming a wall of light. Shockingly, all three of the Pokémon's attacks were repelled by the shield. Misty stopped spinning and clenched her hands. The barrier would hold for only a few seconds, so Misty had to act fast.

"_Let's go offensive and try out that other attack."_ Kasumi instructed.

"Right!" Misty jumped over the light barrier just before it disappeared and concentrated Kasumi's energy into her hands. What appeared was long, thin beams of light. "Laser Strike!" The Cerulean gym leader launched a hail of light-based beams at Corsola and Starmie. The two Pokémon stopped shooting at Misty and jumped to dodge the attacks. Once they avoided the attack, they resumed firing at Misty, who was evading their every attack.

"_Impressive. I've never though I would see Misty use those techniques so soon."_ Satoshi pondered aloud. He noticed the way Ash was staring at the two. It was too easy to tell how surprised and amazed he was.

"I…never knew Misty was this good. Looks like Kasumi and Misty make a pretty good team. If we're paired against them, it'll be a tough fight."

"_I hate to admit it, but I'll have to agree with that. Their speed and long range attacks will probably keep us at bay. But still, they got nothing on us when it comes to tricks."_

"You got that right." Ash agreed. As the boy watched Misty in action, a thought crossed his mind, making him smile. "I've known Misty for so many years, yet I've never seen her work so hard before. I mean, I know she does a lot of work otherwise, but she's giving it her all in this fight."

"_Hmm…that's true…"_ Satoshi couldn't help but wonder about that. Ever since their first battle against Soma, Misty had been training hard and pushing her limits. This was also the case after the comment he had about her a week ago. If Misty was anything like Kasumi, the girl would most certainly have a reason for trying so hard. The only question was what was her motivation? Could it be just to prove him wrong, or was her reason for fighting something else? The two continued to watch Misty train with interest.

As time progressed, Misty started to grow exhausted. "Okay guys, that's it for the night. Thanks for the help!" She recalled the Pokémon into their balls and exhaled. "Alright Ash, you can come out now."

Ash and Satoshi were both shocked. Did she know they were there the entire time? Stepping from the corner, he wore a sheepish grin. "Whoops, hehehe, hey Misty!"

"What are you doing awake so late? Shouldn't you be getting some sleep?"

"You should too. I just couldn't sleep because of tomorrow."

Misty placed her hands on her hips. "Just like before. You were always so full of energy whenever you would have a gym battle the next day."

"But I creamed every one of them, just like I'm going to do in this tournament!" Ash clenched his hands tightly, hyped about tomorrow's battle.

Misty giggled to herself. That quality of Ash was one of many she truly admired. It was definitely worth it to train for both her sake and his. "I look forward to it as well."

"So let's try out best out there! I'll be rooting for you all the way!" Ash extended his hand, looking very determined.

Misty glanced at his hand for a moment. Perhaps she shouldn't feel so special over the handshake, but something about the way Ash said it made her feel very special. After a pause, she grasped Ash's hand and shook it. "And I'll be cheering you on too." The two stayed with their hands still clasp, silence permeating the air. They were content with their current atmosphere.

It was a few moments later when Ash thought of an idea. "You know, while watching you train out there, I couldn't help but feel really excited."

"EH?" Misty jumped, her face darkening in color. What did Ash mean by that comment?

"Also, I was kinda thinking, if you didn't mind, if we could do it together."

Misty's face was now bright pink. "W-w-what? Y-you mean out here, i-in the open?"

"Yeah! I mean, it's not like anyone's going to interrupt us."

"I…I…erm…" Misty turned about swiftly, twiddling her thumbs nervously. _'What am I suppose to say? I mean, we haven't even started dating yet, and he's willing to go this far? What do I do?'_

Ash looked at Misty with great confusion. "Is something wrong? If you don't feel like training together, that's okay."

"Oh, training!" Misty gasped, facing Ash. "Yeah, that's right, you were talking about training together, right?"

Ash blinked. "Yeah. What else would I be talking about?"

"Oh, hehehe, right, I knew that. Sure, I don't mind training with you." Misty laughed nervously.

"_Pervert…"_ Kasumi mumbled.

"_Shut up!"_ Misty growled mentally.

"So, wanna get started?" Ash asked. Misty nodded and the two immediately started sparring.

Cerulean City Gym – Dining Room

Brock was at the kitchen stove doing what he does best when he heard Ash walk in, or rather, shuffle to his seat. "Hey, good morning Ash!"

"Morning Brock…" Ash folded his arms together and rested his head on it.

"Hey Ash, are you alright?" Brock asked worriedly.

Ash released a sigh before answering. "I'm fine, just a little sore from last night…"

"Oh? Doing what may I ask?"

"I was up with Misty. We were going at it for at least two hours…"

A spoon dropped from Brock's hand, along with his jaw. "Say…WHAT!?"

Ash propped his head up with his hand. "Yeah, I was also surprised with how long she could last. And those things of hers were something else too…uhh…Brock?" He called, pondering why Brock was sitting at a corner with depression clouding over him.

"It's not fair…" He mumbled lowly, "How…how could he score with a girl before me…!?"

Ash was very confused. "Brock? What are you talking about?"

"_Ash…you seriously need help on how to speak properly to others…"_ Satoshi suggested with a groan.

"Help on speaking? I don't need help. I speak very goodly!" Ash boasted.

Satoshi could only sigh. "…Just forget it…"

After everyone had eaten and prepared themselves, Ash, Misty and Brock headed for the waiting room in the arena. It was there Brendan awaited them. "Sleep well?"

"Kinda. Are you ready for today?" Ash asked.

Brendan nodded. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be. You guys made it just in time, because they're about to start the next pairings."

"Great! Let's see who's up!" Ash faced the pink haired sensational sister, who stood by the door way.

"Alright everyone, if I may have your attention. I have the list for the first match of the day. For the first round, Misty and Farah, please step up!"

"Alright, I'm up first!" Misty piped, pumped with excitement.

"Good luck Misty." Ash cheered on.

Misty nodded and walked up to her sister. Following her was a teenager around Misty's age with short green hair and gentle brown eyes. She had on a pair of white snow boots and a long sleeved red orange dress. "Let's have a good match, Misty!" Farah said, clenching her fist in excitement. The two women followed Lily to the battle stage.

In the arena area, Violet was more than ready to start as the two fighters took their positions. "Welcome to the second day of the Cerulean Gym's martial arts tournament! First up for today's round promises to be quite a match up! In the right hand corner, we have a skilled martial artist from a village known as Rasheans. She's a tough little cookie and doesn't mind showing it. Let's give it up for FARAH OERSTED!" The crowd applauded for the woman, who flashed everyone a reassured thumbs up and smile. "And on the left hand corner, we have the youngest sensational sister who shows much potential, let's give a hand to MISTY WATERFLOWER!" Once again, the audience clapped for the fighters, eager to see the battle. "Without further ado, let's get started! Ready…! FIGHT!"

(Mid Boss 2 – Tales of Destiny II)

Farah darted forward at Misty instantly, rearing her fist back to attack. Her arm thrust forward with great force, but Misty parried the attack with her own. Farah swung with her other fist, but Misty deflected that attack as well. When Misty saw a small opportunity, she swung her fist at Farah, only for the Rashean's martial artist to block her attack skillfully. The two started exchanging attacks back and forth, the opposition holding their ground and blocking the blows. This lasted for minutes until one of them decided on a new approach.

"Palm Strike!"

_WHAM!_

Misty released a sharp breath, being successfully struck in the stomach by Farah. The sensational sister stumbled back, clutching her stomach painfully. _'That attack was strong…I better take precaution against her…' _She decided on changing styles and went with her Hyoushi Renge, her body and hand motions swaying as though in a dance.

Farah shook her hands out and clenched them tightly. Raising her fist, her foot bounced lightly, keeping her moving. _'I see. That's the same move she used to defeat Jam. It won't work on me.'_ She dashed towards Misty, preparing to strike.

'_Gotcha!'_ Misty thought victoriously as she saw Farah's fist attack coming. She spun into a duck, dodging the powerful fist strike and struck at Farah's vital point.

Unfortunately for Misty, Farah somehow faded away, leaving nothing but air in her place.

'_Oh no, an after image!'_ Misty's eyes widened with shock, unable to react as Farah was behind her.

_SLAM!_

"Ack!" Misty's body hit the ground hard as Farah slammed her elbow into her back, causing heavy damage. Luckily, Misty rolled out of the way before Farah could deliver an even heavier blow with her foot. She jumped up and tried another attempt at the Hyoushi Renge, this time taking the offensive. When Farah tried to counter her, Misty spun around the fist and struck her fingers at the key points on the arm, only for Farah to capture her hands and throw them up, leaving Misty defenseless. "Rising Dragon Strike!"

_POW!_

Misty was sent flying upward by the uppercut attack, being knocked a few feet up and back. She was about to land when Farah lunged at her. "Twin Palm Strike!

_POW! POW!_

The red head was pounded by two consecutive powered up palm strikes, sending her even further. Misty's body tumbled along the ground, battered and injured. _"Misty, can you stand…?"_ Kasumi asked in alarm, fearing her hostess's safety.

Misty struggled to stand on her feet, trying hard to maintain her battle posture. _'I'll be okay…I just didn't expect Farah to be this strong of an opponent…_' She clasped her hands together and closed her eyes, focusing on Kasumi's energy. _'I wish I didn't have to do this so early, but Farah's too good of an opponent to take the easy way out. I'll have to give it my all…'_ Her body was enveloped by a soft yellow glow, showing that her connection with Kasumi was working. "Spirit-sync!" In a flash, Misty's hair changed to silver as her skin changed into a tanned shade.

"What in the name of Inferia did that girl do…?" Farah stepped back in surprise, taken aback by Misty's transformation. She never encountered anything like that during her journeys. This was certainly something new. Though she was surprised at first, she smiled with anticipation. _'I look forward to seeing what she can do…'_

Misty placed her hands on the spots that were struck by Farah. "Regenerate!" With that, her wounds were healed, leaving Misty refreshed. She then jumped high in the air and used the power of Kasumi's light-based energy to form powerful light projectiles. "Laser Strike!"

"Ngh!" Farah guarded herself from the flurry of lasers, the beams giving her scratches. _'What was that? Did she just throw…light?'_ Misty's means of attacking were different from normal approaches. At least Misty was proving to be full of tricks. "HA!" The green haired fighter ran swiftly at Misty, who was dropping down from the air. "Triple Blossom!" Misty defended against Farah's three spin kicks by forming a visible barrier of light in front of her. Once Misty landed, she took the offensive and struck at Farah's chest with several palm strikes before jumping back. "Mirage!" Farah jumped towards Misty while creating several after images, attempting to confuse Misty.

"Laser Strike!" Misty threw the beams at the copies of Farah, a majority of them disappearing. However, she was unsuccessful in hitting Farah before the woman got in physical range.

"Chi!" Farah spun at Misty, striking her several times with her palms before slamming her two palms into Misty's chest.

_BOOM!_

The explosive of chi energy went off like a powerful shotgun, releasing an ear shattering sound resembling a lion's roar. Misty was lifted off her feet and shot across the arena, taking a severe blow from the Chi attack. Thankfully, Misty recovered in mid air and reduced the ground impact by rolling onto her feet. "Regenerate!" Misty used more of her spirit's mana to heal her wounds. Given the amount of energy she used up already, she had to be a little more conservative since healing takes up considerable mana depending on the injuries. It was time to switch battle styles. She slid her feet back and held her palms out in front of her. After taking a deep breath, she charged at Farah with great speed.

_Clash! Clash! Clash!_

Misty's light-charged attacks in combination with Farah's chi based fist attacks created sparks as they continue exchanging blows, both of them holding their ground as equals. After minutes of being in a clashing stand still, the two girls had their fist locked, resorting to a battle of strength and will. Though Misty had undergone great training, Farah was far stronger, and it showed with Misty being pushed back little by little.

"Come on Misty! You can do it!" Ash cheered, enthralled with Misty's performance.

Misty glanced at Ash at the corner of her eye, a wave of happiness washing over her. _'He's…cheering for me...!'_ Her attention turned to the girl in front of her, her teeth gritting tightly. _'As long as Ash is cheering me on, I won't give up!'_ With a burst of motivation, Misty slowly started pushing Farah back.

Farah broke the lock and tried to punch Misty, but the Cerulean gym leader smacked the fist away and thrust her knee into Farah's stomach, knocking the wind out of her. As Farah stumbled back, Misty stood in a new battle stance. Her back knee was bent forward while her other leg was outstretched. The arms were positioned in a similar pattern as her fingers were curved in a praying mantis style. She closed her eyes to heighten her senses and calm her body.

"Palm Strike!" Farah yelled, preparing to strike down Misty. Her hand was inches away when Misty's eyes flashed open.

_SMACK!_

Misty thrust her fist into Farah's chin swiftly, canceling out Farah's attack and stunning the girl. Now was Misty's chance to strike back. Using her finger tips, she struck Farah with unholy speed, too fast for even the most trained eyes to catch. After the many dozens of blows, Misty quickly moved to Farah's side and performed a powerful sweep with her arm, tripping the green haired fighter. "This is the end…!" While Farah was in mid air, Misty raised her fist, putting all of her strength into it. "GATLING BARRAGE!"

_SLAM!_

With that blow, Farah's body hit the floor with a heavy thud. Within moments, all that could be heard was the heavy panting of the two girls. Though Farah was conscious, her body was heavy with wounds and sores from Misty's Gatling Barrage. Misty was weary from her previous rounds with Farah, and performing the Gatling Barrage was no easy task.

Violet began the countdown. "1…2…3…4…" Farah started struggling to get up, but Misty's fist was still planted on her, keeping her down. She could feel Misty's strength dissipating. "5…6…7…8..." The martial artist looked into Misty's eyes, seeing into her soul. There was so much determination in the girl. It was then she knew this battle was lost. "9…10…! By default, Misty is the winner of this match!" Violet announced. The crowd immediately went into a grand applause for the battle.

Misty struggled as she stood up. She looked down on Farah and extended her hand. "That was a great fight, Farah. I couldn't have won without giving it my all."

With a weak smile, Farah gripped Misty's hand, using it to help her get on her feet. "You're definitely the best fighter I've gone against. Let's do it again sometime."

"I just hope it isn't as painful next time." Misty joked. The two held onto each other as they walked towards the waiting room.

Inside, Ash beamed excitedly. "Woohoo! Way to go Misty!" He praised, running up to his friend. Misty raised her hand to give him a thumbs up, but tripped over her own feet, too weak to even stand properly. "Misty!" Ash caught her before she fell, holding her gently.

Misty's eyes opened weakly, giving Ash a sleepy smile. "I'm just a little tired. After all, I barely won that match…" Before Ash could get a word in, she fell asleep, resting her head on his chest. Her spirit-sync dissipated.

"That's one strong girl you got there. Be sure to take good care of her…" Farah grinned sheepishly. She took a seat in one of the benches and leaned into it tiredly, hoping to regain her strength.

"I would take her somewhere to get some rest. Brock and I will take care of things from here." Brendan said. Ash nodded and scooped up Misty, taking her to a room to rest in.

It wasn't too long after that Lily arrived with the next pairing. "If I may have your attention. Brendan Birch and Crisis, please come with me for the second round."

'_Damn…him of all people…what were the odds?'_ Brendan glanced at Crisis, who wielded a grin wicked enough to send chills down his spine.

Crisis walked up to Lily, casting his eyes at Brendan. "Come on _Brendan_, we shouldn't make this lovely lady wait." He grinned.

Brendan sighed as he walked towards the stage, keeping his distance from Crisis. This battle had trouble written all over it.

On the battle stage, Violet started the match right away. "Ladies and gentleman, I hope you're ready for these two talented fighters to get it on! On the left, we have the mysterious yet powerful man known only as CRISIS! On the right we have the genius boy wonder, BRENDAN BIRCH!" The crowd applauded for both fighters. Brendan held a laser-like focus on Crisis, who still kept the evil grin. "Both fighters ready…? FIGHT!"

(Melfice theme – Grandia 2)

Brendan immediately took a defensive position, not taking his eyes off Crisis. _'Just great…this choice of battle music just screams bad news.'_

Crisis chuckled at Brendan's poor means of defense. "Brendan, as you call yourself, if you ever plan on even being a challenge, as least show some effort. Do something like THIS!" He faded from sight in an instant, surprising Brendan.

'_I can't panic. I must keep calm and focus on my surroundings…'_ Brendan closed his eyes, heightening his senses. At first, he couldn't detect anything. But faintly, he could detect fast movement. Crisis…he was attacking from behind. "Got you!" He swung his fist at the direction he perceived.

Only to hit nothing.

"Not good enough!" Crisis said, standing behind Brendan.

_WHAM!_

Brendan was knocked a good few feet, struck by a powerful fist attack. The boy landed with a skid, quickly jumping back to his feet. _'He tricked me…? I thought for sure he was going to—'_

"—Be right behind you?" Crisis finished for him.

Brendan stumbled back in shock. "You…you can read my mind?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Crisis ran swiftly towards Brendan, arching his hands into claws. Brendan was barely able to avoid the continuous swipe attacks as he started back up, evading what attacks he could.

"Why do you hold back? Perhaps you're trying to find the easy way out of this fight? Or maybe…" Crisis caught Brendan by the shirt and pulled him close to a whisper. "Maybe you're afraid of showing your powers…?"

'_He…knows…?'_ Brendan pushed him back, keeping distance from the man.

"Hmhmhm, how amusing. You're actually trying to put up a fight. Let's see how you resist this!" Crisis jumped in the air towards Brendan. As Brendan dashed to the side to avoid the attack, Crisis disappeared in midair.

"Not this again…" Brendan crossed his arms defensively, keeping his eyes and wits about him. There was total silence on the arena, creating great tension. Where would Crisis strike next? It was almost as if he was hiding…

"BOO!" Crisis shouted, instantly appearing right in front of Brendan.

"GWAH!" Brendan fell on his behind, completely spooked by the sudden appearance. Strangely, Crisis seemed to have stopped in suspended animation, only to slowly fade away.

"Hahahaha…the look of fear in your eyes was absolutely priceless! You are such a card, _Brendan_…" Crisis's voice echoed throughout the stage, seemingly coming from every direction.

'_Why does he keep emphasizing my name…? Does he know something I don't…?' _Suddenly, he could feel Crisis's presence. It was very close.

"I do know something you don't. Wish to know?" Crisis whispered into his ear.

"RAAH!" Brendan swung wildly at Crisis, who merely faded from view again. This was starting to get annoying. "Stop with the games and fight me already!"

"But the fun is just getting started. Then again, I do suppose this is getting a little boring." Crisis stopped running around and crouched on one knee while supporting himself with one hand. He was prepared to sprint. "I would start running if I were you…" His free hand was starting to glow faintly with ominous energy as the man raised it into the air. Suddenly, he broke into a speedy dash. "Psychic Slash!"

Brendan stepped back just in time to dodged the strike and counter with his fist attacks. Crisis dove to the side and attacked with his Psychic Slash again, this time slashing across Brendan's chest. The younger white haired fighter back flipped away from the attacker, going defensive again. _'Psychic attacks…? So he IS psychic after all. Well, doesn't that just make things more difficult…?' _Brendan grimaced, dodging Crisis's assault.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Crisis performed a leap in the air, preparing a lethal pounce on Brendan.

_  
SLASH!_

Crisis's slash attack grazed the ground as Brendan jumped into a roll, barely avoiding the attack. "Why don't you fight back, boy? I know you have the ability to do so!"

'_And that's the problem. I CAN'T use my abilities. Not in such a public place. But then again…I have to do _something_…'_ Cursing his luck, Brendan decided on a different approach to this battle.

He started running.

"You're not going to escape me that easily!" Crisis started chasing Brendan as the boy was reaching the edge of the arena. The psychic jumped towards Brendan once the boy stopped at the edge, preparing another Psychic Slash.

'_Sorry Boss Man, I'm going to have to break the rules for this battle…!' _Brendan clapped his hands together and waited for Crisis's attack. The position was just right for this to work.

_SLASH!_

The ground where Brendan stood had a deep gash tore into it. However, Brendan no longer stood in that position. "What…?" Crisis blinked in surprise, not expecting such a maneuver.

"Eat this!" Brendan exclaimed, leaping at Crisis from behind. Cleverly, Crisis merely stepped backwards towards Brendan and thrust his elbow into the boy.

_WHAM!_

Brendan released a sharp gasp, receiving a powerful blow. Crisis grinned mischievously. "Sorry, but you'll have to try better than that before you can even think of landing an attack on me. You have to do an attack like this…" He turned around and placed his free hand on Brendan's chest. Brendan was given no chance to retaliate as Crisis called out an attack. "Psychic Force!"

_BAM!_

Brendan's body flipped wildly into the air and landed roughly on the ground. Signs of smoke emanated from his seared chest as he attempted to stand up, trying to recover from the attack. Crisis walked up to the battered Brendan, who was crouched. Crisis looked displeased as he lifted up Brendan by the hair. "Hmph, how disappointing. I expected better from you. I think I'll have some fun with you…" He lifted his other hand and gripped Brendan's forehead.

And that was all Brendan could see before his world went black.

Unknown area

(The one who is torn apart – Xenogears)

"Ugh…" Brendan groaned as he started to awaken, finding himself lying on the ground. He shook his head and stood up, trying to figure out where he was.

There was nothing but black all around.

"Where…is this place? Wasn't I fighting that guy in the tournament?" Brendan questioned himself.

"Actually, you are still in the tournament. As for where this place is, you may be a little surprised…"

"That voice…Crisis?" Brendan looked around, but couldn't find a trace of Crisis's whereabouts.

"Now that no one can hear us, we can have an actual conversation…my dear Cataclysm…"

"Cataclysm? What are you talking about?

"What, did you actually forget Cataclysm? It's your name. Your true name."

"No way! My name is not Cataclysm!" Brendan denied.

"Hmhmhm…so naïve you are, Cataclysm. But perhaps it's too early to tell you the truth. I doubt your consciousness can handle the gravity of your identity. On the other hand, I've found something rather interesting…" Crisis faded into view, holding what resembled a brown, hard covered book.

Brendan grew curious about the book. "Where are we and what is that book?"

"Why this is your mind, of course. The fact you can't see anything should've been a dead giveaway, considering your ever so 'mysterious' nature. And this book, you ask? It's nothing special, except the fact it holds information in which you may find entertaining…oh? Well that's interesting! Did you know that one of your hobbies include collecting information? Perhaps it's time I walked a mile in your shoes, eh?"

Brendan raised an eyebrow. "What….? I never told you anything about…wait a sec…" His eyes widened when he saw the named listed on the book.

It read Brendan Birch.

"That book…is it…?"

Crisis's malevolent grin grew wide, not taking his eyes off the book. "About time you noticed. It contains every bit of info about you that you know of. Your memories you might want to call it. Ah, another piece of interesting info. Did you know that you actually enjoy being around your 'family', namely Boss Man, Gary, Ritchie, Wes and Rui? I find it very interesting, don't you?"

"Stop it!" Brendan lunged at Crisis, only for the mysterious man to fade from view and reappear at another spot.

Crisis leafed through the pages until he spotted something else. "Ohohoho! Well this is just plain juicy! According to this, the two people that are closest you are your brother, Wes Wilder, and your sister, Rui Mazaki. My, aren't you just a softie?"

"Grr…leave me alone…!" Brendan attacked again, but Crisis just repeated his earlier action, evading the strike. "Stop playing these mind games and just fight already!"

"And what, miss out on your favorite hobby? I can certainly see why you enjoy it. This is just so much fun!" The white haired menace continued flipping through the pages until he reached a point in the book that aroused his interest. "Wait a minute…according to this, you….hmhmhmhmhm….HAHAHAHAHA! This is perfect! Absolute gold! I can't believe it!" He chuckled madly.

"Stop reading my memories damn you!" Brendan was growing furious at Crisis's antics. He didn't know where the man was going with this, but he knew he wasn't going to like it.

Crisis ignored Brendan and continued reading. "It seems that over the years, you've gained something precious to you…a heart to be precise. Hmph, had you known what you really are, you would be surprised by the fact you even had a heart. And take a gander at this…it would seem as though someone has stolen your heart. Not long ago in fact…"

"Stop it…"

"And it seems she's completely oblivious to your affections too…"

"Stop it…!"

"Heh, how humorous." Crisis closed the book and gave Brendan an insidious look. "You're in love with your ever so precious sister, Rui Mazaki. Am I right?" Brendan's fist trembled with fury as he glared murderously at Crisis. Crisis, being the comical mad man he is, gave the boy a surprised glance. "…Was it something I said?"

"I'm…I'm…I'm going to KILL YOU!" Brendan dashed with great speed at Crisis, swinging his fist of fury at him.

Crisis caught the attack, and glanced at the fist. "Hmm…the motivation is there, but you're not yet strong enough for me. Actually, hold on a second…" He faded from view, leaving Brendan in darkness. A minute later, he reappeared. "It looks like Zao is getting impatient. It's always painful when he's upset. I apologize for leaving so soon, but don't worry, I'll leave you a going away gift. I think a mental scar should be good enough."

"Ah…!" In the next moment, Brendan found himself chained to a wall. Ahead of him were Boss Man, Gary, Ritchie, Wes and Rui. They all had sharp swords in their hands and blank looks in their eyes. Crisis stood in front of them, a mischievous expression on his face.

"Like what you see? It gets better. Just watch." Crisis snapped his fingers. Right then, the five top members of Team Nova started fighting each other in a battle to the death.

"What are you guys doing? Stop fighting each other! The enemy is right there!" Brendan yelled in a panic.

"I'm afraid your words fall on deaf ears. This is the place where your wildest nightmares come true, courtesy of me of course."

_SLASH!_

"Ooh, and one of them bites the dust." Crisis quipped, noting the death of the first victim, Ritchie. One by one, each of the team members died by their own member's hands until one of them were left.

It was Rui.

"And now for the best part! Go Rui!" Crisis commanded. Rui looked at Brendan and walked up to him. She pulled back the sword and stabbed Brendan with it several times, causing the poor teen to undergo excessive torture. After a long series of stab wounds, everything went black.

A split second later, Brendan opened his eyes, just to find his team members in the same exact position before they killed each other. The only difference was the fact Crisis wasn't there. "Did you enjoy a taste of my abilities? I hope so, because this will continue for 24 hours. If you still retain your sanity after this, remember these words well Cataclysm: As long as you are still alive, I will continue to hunt you down. Those who you care for will befall a horrible fate, unless you gain the strength to kill me. Should you kill me, these nightmares will end. Remember that…" After that message, the Team Nova massacre resumed, and repeated continuously in similar forms of gruesome fate.

Cerulean City Gym – Battle arena

Crisis released his grip on Brendan's forehead. Trapped in the illusionary world, Brendan fell on the floor, his eyes void of consciousness. "Start the countdown. He won't be getting up anytime soon."

"Uh…okay. 1…2…3…" As Violet started counting down, she couldn't help but feel worried. Brendan had such a pained expression on his face. It was a wonder what Crisis did to him. "8…9…10! The winner of this match is Crisis!"

As Crisis walked off the stage, he glanced at Brendan, who was currently being picked up by a stretcher. _'Grow strong Cataclysm…for when you do…my plans will be well on the path of completion.'_

Inside the waiting room, Brock cast a worried look at the fallen Brendan. Though he had no idea what happened, that Crisis must've done something terrible. He could only hope the same fate wouldn't befall him. The breeder considered going to check on Brendan's condition when he saw Lily preparing to tell the next pairing.

"Attention fighters! I hope you're all pumped and ready for the next round. Will Brock Slate and Naruto please come with me!" Lily announced.

"Alright! Now it's my turn to shine!" An energetic blonde teen yelled, shooting his first in the air. The blue eyed boy wore an orange jumpsuit, a pair of blue sandals and had three streaks across his cheeks, resembling whiskers.

Brock raised an eyebrow at Naruto. _'He's quite lively. This should be interesting.'_ He thought as he walked with Lily and Naruto to the stage.

On the battleground, each fighter took their stances and stood a good amount of feet away from each other. Violet stood in between the two. "It's time for round 3, so I hope you're ready for some more heated action! On one side, we got the skilled pervert all the way from Pewter City, give it up for BROCK SLATE!"

"…You've really got to work on your introductions…" Brock mumbled, giving her a flat gaze.

Violet ignored Brock and continued. "And on the other side, we have a ninja coming all the way from Konoha village! He's the village's number one hyperactive ninja; give a big hand for NARUTO UZUMAKI!" The crowd gave a grand applause for the young lad, who grinned widely. "Fighters ready…? FIGHT!" And off the stage she went to give the two fighters room.

(Sarutobi – Naruto)

"Shall we begin?" Brock slid his foot back and curled his back fist while his other hand was open, the back of it facing Naruto.

Naruto held his hands in front of him, his fore fingers performing a plus sign. "Kage Bushin no jutsu!" Two more Naruto clones emerged from Naruto, the three man team running swiftly at Brock.

'_Kage what? Must be a fancy name for after images.' _Brock awaited the assault of the Narutos. The first one approached from his right and tried to attack with a jump kick. Brock stepped to the side, barely avoiding the jump kick, but leaving Naruto open.

_WHAM!_

Brock sent Naruto flying with a crushing blow to the face. "Hah, gotcha!"

_POOF!_

Or so Brock thought.

'_Wait…that wasn't an after image…but that wasn't the real one either…'_ Brock only had time to glance back at the other Narutos rushing him.

_POW!_

One of the Naruto copies punched Brock in the stomach while the other jump kicked him in the chest. The attack injured Brock, but his body was tough enough to shake it off. "Eat this!" Brock grabbed the aerial Naruto and slammed him into the other.

_POOF!_

Brock was shocked when the two Naruto's disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Where did he go?" His eyes scanned the surroundings closely, but then quickly looked up to see Naruto flying towards him from the air. "Oh no you don't!" Brock held his arms up defensively, blocking the aerial attack. As soon as Naruto landed, the young ninja sent a swarm of fast-paced fist and kick attacks. The Pewter City gym leader was holding his ground well against him, blocking and evading blocks in a calculating manner. Once Brock saw a pause in Naruto's attacks, he immediately pulled back his fist for a crushing attack.

Naruto saw the attack coming and barely dodged it. This time, Brock was taking the offensive against him, making the ninja step back and dodge the attacks. Brock made his attacks precise to make up for the slower, but more powerful pace of strikes. Naruto couldn't block any of the attacks, or else he would receive some injures due to the force.

The young ninja jumped away just in time to dodge Brock's powerful swing. It looked like he would have to put some emphasis on his abilities. Pressing his hands together, Naruto charged himself with chakra energy, increasing his strength and speed considerably. "Kage Bushin no jutsu!" This time, Naruto created 8 more clones. All nine Narutos ran at Brock again, but this time with twice the speed of before.

Though outnumbered and beaten by speed, Brock wasn't daunted by Naruto's abilities, but impressed. Of course, he wasn't one to take lightly. "It's time to get serious." Brock flexed his hands and stood his ground. He looked up at two of the Naruto clones rushing towards him. After avoiding their initial strike, he thrust his fist into each of the Naruto clones' stomach with great force, instantly making them dissipate. Two more approached closely from behind, but Brock leapt backwards and slammed his elbow into their faces, also making them disappear. Two more approached from each of Brock's sides, but he saw it coming at the last second. Brock gripped one of the clone's fists and swung Naruto's entire body at the other clone, canceling them out. The three remaining Naruto clones engaged into fierce close combat.

In the stands, three people watched the battle with a combination of excitement and intrigued. "YOU CAN DO IT NARUTO! SHOW THAT GUY WHOSE BOSS!!" A pink haired girl, Sakura, cheered loudly, shooting her fist in the air.

A raven haired boy sitting next to Sakura wasn't nearly as excited, but rather interested with the fight. However, he retained a cool, calm, and collected look. "Hmph, he isn't doing too bad…for a loser. It should be me that's out there." The boy, Sasuke, scoffed.

"Now, now, Sasuke. Naruto beat you fair and square at a chance to prove that he's capable of becoming Hokage. Show some support for a fellow teammate." The grey haired masked teacher, Kakashi, stated wisely. Sasuke merely huffed in response, mumbling about how much he hated rock-paper-scissors.

Naruto stopped fighting in mid-match to stare at his teammates, mainly Sakura, with tears of joy. "Sakura's cheering for me…!" He extended his fist towards Sakura, giving the girl a thumbs up. "SAKURA! I'M GOING TO WIN THIS ONE FOR YOU!"

Sakura showed off a nervous smile while waving haphazardly at Naruto. "Err…y-yeah…do that…" However, her inner self, Inner Sakura, had other thoughts in mind. _'Come on Naruto, I got 100 bucks riding on this! Don't lose this one!'_

"Whoa…that girl is pretty cute!" Brock mused, flashing his signature grin.

"Hey, hey! Hands off, no eyes! That's MY girlfriend!"

"Not if I beat you to it, blondie!" Brock challenged.

Naruto gasped, and then glared in anger. "Take. That. Back!"

"Don't worry, I will, after I take your Sakura!"

"Keep your pervy hands away from her!"

"No way! She'll be mine!" The two started arguing back and forth, glaring at each other.

'_You've got to be kidding me…'_ Sakura sighed, _'That guy scares me more than Rock Lee...' _Her anger soared once they continued to bicker over her. "BOTH OF YOU ARE WRONG! I'M SASUKE'S GIRLFRIEND!"

Sasuke's eyes widened with shock. "What the hell? How am I involved in this?"

Naruto started glaring daggers at his rival, Sasuke. "DAMMIT SASUKE! STOP TRYING TO STEAL MY GIRLFRIEND!"

"No, you mean my girlfriend!" Brock corrected.

"THAT'S IT! PREPARE TO DIE, NO EYES!" Naruto shouted, finally having enough of the nonsense.

"YOU'RE GOING DOWN, BLONDIE!" Brock and Naruto both restarted their battle with each other.

As the fight between Brock and Naruto resumed, Sasuke shot the two an incredulous look. "Just great…more idiots to deal with…"

As time progressed, Brock soon found himself at a disadvantage. Naruto seemed to have endless energy as he continued to pummel Brock with more and more clones. During the exchange of fist, Naruto punched Brock in the face, stunning him for a moment. That was all the ninja needed. "Here we go!" Naruto made two more clones. Four of the five Naruto clones surrounded the stunned Brock and dashed at him.

"U-ZU-MA-KI!" Each of the clones yelled respectively, striking Brock with a simultaneous upward kick. The breeder was thrown high into the air, unwillingly awaiting the finishing move the real Naruto was about to give. Naruto was right above Brock. "NARUTO RENDAN!"

_WHAM! CRASH!_

Brock plummeted to the ground with a very hard crash. Naruto landed soon after and canceled his Kage Bushin technique. The crowd was in a hush as Brock lay on the ground. He wasn't moving.

Violet decided to start the countdown. "1…2…3…"

'Come on Brock, get up. Don't let this guy beat you! You've worked too hard for this!' Takeshi encouraged.

"4…5…6…7…8—" Violet cut herself off when she saw Brock struggling to stand up. The Breeder, though battered and injured, stood on his feet. "Brock has stood up. The battle will continue!"

Naruto was stunned. No one had ever taken the full front of his combo attack and stayed unconscious. '_This guy…he sure has some will power! He's definitely a worthy opponent.'_

Everything was at a stand still. Brock suffered greatly through those attacks and was still standing. "Don't think…you've won…just yet. I…still have some fight left in me…" He slammed his palms together, focusing on Takeshi's mana. "Spirit-sync!" A rush of wind whipped around the two battlers as Brock's hair changed to a dark green, succeeding in the spirit-sync.

'_What the heck did he do? All he did was change his hair color…'_ Naruto pondered in confusion. Even though he really wanted to know what this spirit-sync was, he knew not to underestimate his opponent. This time, Naruto was going to go all out. "Taiyuu Kage Bushin no jutsu!"

The crowd gasped in shock at what they saw next.

Dozens of Naruto clones flooded the battle arena. It was now Brock against 50 Naruto clones.

Naruto smirked in victory. There was no way Brock would be able to face all of them in his condition. "Let's see you beat my army of clones!"

Brock grimaced slightly. _'I didn't want to try it this early, but it's better to test that move you taught me…'_

Takeshi nodded. _'You have a point. I will do the best I can to provide you energy. Use it well.'_

'_I plan to.'_ Brock clenched his fist tightly, preparing his body. "You're a good opponent Naruto, but it's time I took this battle to a whole new level!" The Naruto clones had to shield themselves as a gust of wind suddenly exploded from Brock. Once the charge was complete, a strong circulation of air was flowing over Brock's arms and legs. "Now the real battle begins!"

"Let's go!" Naruto yelled, as he and his army of clones clashed with a spirit-synced Brock.

As the two clashed, Brock was engulfed with dozens of kicks and punches. Shockingly, he had been able to block and parrying almost every single attack. In slow motion, Brock could be seen carefully blocking each attack and strike at a clone, causing it to disappear. Brock would slip through the guard of the copies and knock them out, quickly going to the next one. Some of the clones tried to grab onto Brock to restrain him, but it was like trying to hold down a raging beast. No such luck.

Brock saw a group of Naruto clones in front of him in a row. There was his opportunity to try out some of his new attacks. "Here we go!" He leapt forward with his fist as the spearhead, which was engulfed in a thick swirl of wind. "Wind Fist!"

_WHAM!_

"Ah…!" A line of Naruto clones were swiftly wiped out from the attack.

"Hmph! Your clones can't hold me back! Why don't you just…" Brock lifted one of the copies in the air, "Come out and face me!" He hurled it at two more clones, making those three disappear.

'_Damn…no eyes is even tougher than fuzzy brows…! But he has a point. I'm only wasting energy.'_ Naruto thought ruefully. He canceled the ninjutsu, leaving only him, one other clone, and Brock. "You give me no choice. Time to use my ultimate attack!" Naruto extended his hand to his clone, who started making the notion with his hands over Naruto's extended one, as though he was spinning something. Suddenly, a swirl of wind started forming in the palm of Naruto's hand. It soon turned into a small blue ball of swirling energy. "Look out no eyes, because I'm about to wipe you out!" The clone grabbed Naruto's free hand, spun him around for momentum, and released Naruto towards Brock before disappearing. "RASENGAN!"

Brock dashed towards Naruto with his fist curled tightly, putting all of his energy into the strike. "WIND FIST!

_CLASH!_

The crowd closest to the stage was almost blown away with the force emitting from the two battlers. Violet had to hold onto the stage in order to prevent being blown away. Both fighters held their ground, staring down each other. Their limits were being tested as they began pushing their respective attacks into their opponent.

'_What…?'_ Brock stared in shock as the Rasengan started pushing him back. He was losing. _'This kid…he's incredible! If this keeps up…I'm going to lose…!' _Though he was trying his hardest, Naruto's Rasengan was too condensed and powerful. At any moment, the attack would break through and hit Brock. The match will be over if Brock receives a direct hit. He studied Naruto's Rasengan as best he could to spot a weakness. It was literally a ball of wind, compressed into an unbreakable attack. How was he going to get an edge and win? Was it even possible? _'Man, if only I could somehow break that ball. That thing has got to be as solid as a rock…wait a minute…'_ Brock thought back to his training with Team Nova.

_Flashback_

"RAAAH!" Brock charged at the boulder in front of him and raised his fist.

_CRACK!_

"Agh…!" Brock coiled on the ground, holding his fist in agony. He almost broke his hand.

"Don't be so weak! Try again!" Wes demanded.

"But it's impossible! I've tried over 10 times, but I can't do it! How on earth am I supposed to break a rock with my fist? I'm not strong enough!" Brock argued.

"It's because it's a rock that you CAN break it!" Wes answered.

Brock stared at Wes, dumbfounded. "…huh?"

"Ugh, useless. Look, you need to realize something. You are a powerhouse. A powerhouse must be able to break through anything in order to get to the target. The minute you are stopped or blocked, it's over. Now tell me this: What is the weakness of solid matter?"

"The weakness of solid matter?"

"Yeah, think about it. Have you ever seen construction worker go at it? They don't use hammers or blunt weapons to break into things. Think about what they use…"

Brock took a moment to think about the question. "…They…dig. They use sharp tools, right?"

"Partially. Everything has a center gravity that holds it together, just like this rock. A rock and a balloon are the same in concept, except one is just more condensed. What do you use to pop a balloon?"

"That's easy. A pin!"

"What about rocks?"

"Hmm…a drill?"

"Correct. Now, where's the best spot on an object to use it?"

Brock, being that he works with rock Pokémon, knew this answer. "It's the center…" His eyes lit up at the realization.

"Exactly. The weakest point in any solid object is the center. You need the right strength and the piercing ability to break any solid object or defense. If you hit it the right way with your fist, it can be just as devastating as a drill. Observe!" Wes swiftly turned around and punched the boulder. In an instant, the boulder cracked and fell apart, proving Wes's point.

_End of Flashback_

'_I see…so I just have to strike the center to break Naruto's Rasengan…but it's too small! Think…think…!'_ Brock grimaced as he was getting pushed back. He had to be quick.

Takeshi knew what Brock was trying to do, and had an idea of how to help. _'Brock, wind is a formless ability, like water. It's hard to control, but possesses much malleability. If you wish to 'pierce' Naruto's Rasengan, you will have to change the form of your attack. I'll leave it up to you.'_

'_Change the form of my attack…yes, I got it!'_ Using most of his remaining mana and stamina, Brock started concentrating on his fist and the shape he had in mind. Suddenly, the wind forming around his arm started swirling faster and grew narrower, changing the very shape of the wind in front of his fist. The wind grew sharper. _'Now to finish it!'_ Brock grinned as he quickly made the wind spinning around his arm reverse direction, spinning the same way Naruto's Rasengan did. Something shocking happened at that moment.

"W…what? No way!" Naruto gasped in shock. The sharp front of Brock's Wind Fist started piercing into Naruto's Rasengan. Not only that, but because both wind attacks were going in the same direction, and Naruto's attack was spinning faster, the Rasengan powered up Brock's Wind Fist, making it almost 10 times faster and more powerful.

Brock started pushing in as his new attack absorbed Rasengan's power, boosting his considerably. "This is it! WIND DRILL!"

_POW!_

"AAAAAAAH!" The attack struck Naruto and sent him flying off the battle stage, spinning at an incredible pace.

_CRASH!_

Naruto's body was thrown into the stands, creating an explosion of dust and wreckage. As the dust cleared, dizzy swirls could be seen in his eyes as he lay on top of the rubble. He was unconscious.

Brock canceled the spirit-sync and held onto his arm, which had gone numb. The Rasengan gave his Wind Drill too much power for him to control properly. "Phew, that was too close."

Violet walked up to Brock and raised his hand high. "And the winner by a knockout is BROCK SLATE!" The crowd applauded both fighters' efforts and valor. It was a remarkable battle.

In the stands, Naruto's allies went to the fallen hero's side, checking on his condition. Naruto opened his eyes and stared the pink haired girl standing above him. "Sakura…! I need you to kiss me in order to give me strength…!"

_STOMP!_

"I was just kidding, Sakura!" Naruto cried, getting stomped repeatedly by Sakura.

"I lost 100 bucks because of you! You're gonna pay for that!" Sakura yelled furiously.

Brock sweat-dropped at Sakura's aggressive behavior. It rivaled Misty's behavior. Speaking of which… "I should check up on those two to see how they are doing." He started making his way towards the room Misty was resting in.

Cerulean City Hospital – Misty's Room

Ash sat in the quiet hospital room for what felt like hours, the only sound being Misty's breathing. At first, Ash merely wanted to make sure Misty was okay, which she was. But now, he just sat in a chair and kept a half focused gaze towards the girl. He couldn't clearly understand just what he suddenly found to be so intriguing to him. Years ago, he would've easily dismissed the thoughts in his head and acknowledge Misty as his best friend. But now, something was different. Could it have been the fact it's been so long since he had seen her? Or maybe, he was maturing into the age where his thoughts would be as confusing as they were curious. Though he didn't know the answer, there was just something about the girl that captured his attention and wouldn't let go. A throbbing sensation which compelled him to do something, something he didn't understand quite clearly.

The boy's eyes glanced over to Misty's face. He felt his heart skip a beat as he sucked in a silent breath. Now he really wondered why he never really noticed before. Misty's face had a very soft and smooth complexion, further enhanced by the sunlight outside. Her hair was slightly longer than he remembered, covering some of her face. Even the simpler designs of her face, such as her nose and ears, had formed her face into a delicate entity, one that Ash had to consider cute. Cute, something Ash normally wouldn't admit, but had no problem admitting that about Misty. At least, he wouldn't say that out loud.

His finger tips stroked Misty's face as gingerly as a feather would. It was more pleasing to his senses than he had ever anticipated. _'Why…? Why am I doing this…?' _Ash questioned himself. He certainly didn't want to be seen doing such a thing, even less wake up Misty. However, something tugged at him, persuading him to perform such strange actions. _'This…feels so…weird, but also…kinda nice.' _The wandering fingers traveled towards her hair, allowing the strands to flow over his finger tips gracefully. He didn't know what Misty did to keep her hair so fine, but it was definitely working.

He jumped a little when he noticed Misty shifting in bed, quickly withdrawing his hand. His breath was still, praying he didn't awaken Misty. After a moment of small movement, Misty stopped, showing that Ash's prayers were answered. Ash released the air he was holding back, relieved. _'What on earth am I doing? I shouldn't be doing this kind of stuff! I mean, really!'_ He shook his head, trying to straighten out his strange thoughts. All came to a halt once his eyes lay on Misty's small, pink lips.

A big mistake on Ash's part.

Ash's heart rate quickened at the sight, his cheeks gaining extra color. A wild thought suddenly flashed through his mind, one that even surprised him. He wondered how soft Misty's lips were. Given how smooth her hair and face was, her lips were probably just as smooth. There was a hint of lip gloss, something that provoked his curiosity even more, making him ponder the ultimate question: What would her lips taste like? His radical thoughts were beginning to be something of problem, especially since he was slowly leaning forward. Just a small, innocent one wouldn't hurt anyone, right? As his heart started beating more and more rapidly, his face was getting close to hers. His eyes were unfocused, as though stuck in an unshakable trance. _'I…I shouldn't do this…this isn't…this isn't…'_ He couldn't complete the thought, too entranced to think clearly. He was so close, he could feel the heat of her breath beating on his lips, enticing his unconscious mind to push for the last inch. Just as those thoughts occurred for that final inch, Ash—

_Knock! Knock! Knock!_

—was infinitely thankful for the interruption. He was immediately on his feet and attentive to the person knocking on the door. "Come in!" Ash answered, but quiet enough so he wouldn't wake up Misty.

The door open, and Brock stepped in, still holding his arm. "Hey Ash! I won my match!"

"Awesome!" Ash cheered, giving Brock a high five. "How did Brendan do? Or did he not fight yet?"

"Actually…he did fight. His battle was against Crisis…"

Ash winced at the news. "So…what happened?"

"Brendan lost, but something weird happened. During the battle, Crisis held onto Brendan's head. It was only for a few seconds, but after Crisis released him, Brendan just dropped to the floor. He looked utterly destroyed. I hope he's alright…"

"Me too." Ash agreed solemnly. Though he wasn't exactly on friendly terms on Brendan, he still didn't want anything terrible to befall him. After all, he did help Ash on a few occasions.

Brock peered over Ash's shoulder, taking a peek at Misty. "How's Misty doing?"

"Fine!" Ash answered quickly, feeling jumpy about the subject.

Brock noticed this, and grew curious. "Are you alright? You seem just a tad…excited."

"Oh no, not at all! I-I'm just fine, really!" Ash tried to hide his anxiety, but it was slipping. Brock raised an eyebrow, not believing him the slightest. "A-ah…I'm gonna go towards the arena area. I'll see you there!" The nervous boy walked briskly past Brock and towards the designated area.

"_I wonder why he looked so nervous..."_ Takeshi pondered.

"You got me on that one. Oh well, let's just follow him." Brock shrugged, heading towards where Ash went.

Ash and Brock arrived just as Lily was starting the next match. "Zao and Soma, please come with me to the arena."

"Soma!" Ash and Brock darted their eyes in the direction of the man that defeated them before. As Ash remembered, he still wore his glasses and bandanna.

The Fire Vizier was walking past Ash when he noticed him and grinned with anticipation. "So far, so good Ash. I hope you have improved, because next time, I won't be going easy on you. Let's just hope you will last longer this time."

"Hmph, we'll see about that." Ash scoffed angrily. Man that guy was cocky.

"Let's calm down and watch the fight. Remember who he's going against." Brock advised sagely.

"Hmm…" Ash did just that and stared outward towards the arena. He knew well of Soma's overwhelming strength, but Zao was definitely no pushover.

There was no clear-cut winner in this battle.

Zao stood on one side of the arena, his arms crossed and his posture serious and unflinching. Soma on the other hand looked more than ready to start, as was Violet. "On this corner, we have a very cool, calm and collected fighter who shows great potential on the arena. He's the tall, mysterious and handsome ZAO KAIZA!" Violet waited until the clapping died down. "And in the other corner, he reigns from foreign lands, facing only the strongest of opponents and breaking them down. He's the flaming powerhouse known as SOMA HOMURA!" And thus Soma was given his round of applause. Violet stepped away from the around to give the fighters room. "Are the fighters ready…? FIGHT!

(Get down to business – Order sol's theme – Guilty Gear Slash)

Soma slapped his fist together in excitement. "I've been waiting for a good match all day. Don't disappoint me now!" He jumped high in the air and dove right at Zao. Zao side stepped just in time to dodge an earth shattering aerial punch. The metal floorboard suffered a huge dent from the attack. Soma was immediately on his feet and stampeding towards his opponent. As the vizier started swinging his fist, Zao continuously dodged his attacks with ease. "Stop dodging and fight me! Blazing Bri—!" Soma's attack was halted when Zao snatched his fist, his piercing gaze not leaving Soma's eyes.

"(Are you the fire vizier?)" Zao inquired in a foreign language. Soma stared wide eyed at the man. Zao was speaking in luminarian! "(Answer my question.)"

"(What if I am?)" Soma answered.

Zao's eye narrowed almost unnoticeably. "(Then fight for your life.)" Zao released Soma's fist for an instant before punching Soma's face. The blow made Soma stepped back, taken by surprise. Luckily, he recovered as Zao charged towards him with unparalleled speed. Soma had a hard time keeping up with the pace.

'_What the hell? Who is this guy?'_ Soma grimaced as he back away from Zao, who was continuously chasing him down. _'I don't like feeling I'm getting from him. I should finish this quickly._' Soma jumped back further, dodging a punch from Zao and powering himself up. Zao watched as flames enveloped Soma's body. "Eat this! BURNING RAVE!" With a loud battle cry, Soma lunged at Zao with flames of fury.

_CRASH!_

Zao guarded against Soma's Burning Rave and was pushed all the way to the wall outside the arena grounds. A mix of fire and dust clouded the two from sight. A trail of seared concrete and melted metal was made from the attack. When the two fighters were visible, the crowd could see Soma and Zao in a lock.

The mysterious yellow eyed fighter stared at Soma with an emotionless stare while Soma had aggressive ones. "(…Is that it? Show your true power, or die a weakling.)" Zao demanded.

_POW!_

Soma's body flew from his position all the way back to arena, but recovered in midair and landed safely. "Agh…damn it…!" He was crouched on the ground, clutching his stomach painfully. Zao jumped over to the stage and landed softly in front of Soma.

"(I want to see your true strength. Do it now, or die. Those are your only choices.)" Zao said bitterly.

_WHAM!_

Soma was punched in the face, pushing him further back by a few feet. After spitting out blood, he stood up with a heated expression on his face. "So it's a fight you want? I didn't want to do this so soon, but I'll make the exception here." He gripped his knuckles tightly while tensing every muscle on his body. A ring of fire appeared on the ground around him, rising along with his energy. "Tyrant Overdrive!" The fire suddenly exploded from him, enveloping his body. He dashed forward without warning, creating a blaze trail towards Zao. Zao jumped, dodged, and block each devastating attack.

The Vizier jumped in the air reeled both of his fists back. "Hyper Gun Flare!" He thrust his fist like a machine gun, shooting fire bullets that were twice the size of his normal Gun Flare. Zao quickly dodged the hail of deadly fire bullets, making sure to avoid getting hit. When he saw the perfect time to strike, he jumped as high as Soma and swung his fist, only for Soma to catch it. If Zao was surprised, he didn't show it. "You're not going to get me that easily!" With a cry, he spun Zao and tossed him at the ground. Fortunately for Zao, he landed on his feet, avoiding injury.

'_I really need to finish this guy off while I have the chance.'_ Soma spun his body super fast, leaving a large trail of flames as he spiraled down at Zao. "Let's see you block this! Hyper Burning Rave!" To everyone else's point of view, it would look like a meteor that was flying down at his opponent.

Zao frowned at the fiery powerhouse. Even for him, that attack would cause severe injury if hit directly. Soma was about to land a hit on Zao, when the black haired man moved his hair away from his other eye, revealing something that surprised Soma for an instant.

In the next second, there was a blinding crash that temporarily blinded the audience. All was clear when the flash ended.

Soma had missed, but there was also something else. He was no longer a fighting ball of flame. "What…? Impossible!" The red haired fighter exclaimed.

Zao side stepped at the last second and guarded himself from the explosion of fire. His hair was back in position, blocking the side of his face. "(Tyrant Overdrive.)" He said in monotone. Just like Soma, there was a rush of fire flowing from Zao. He glared down at Soma, who was vulnerable. "(Die.)" He raised his fist to deliver a fatal strike.

But stopped less than an inch before striking.

With merely a grunt, Zao left the stage.

There was a long period of silence. No one had any idea what just happened. "Uh…okay…I guess that means Zao forfeits the match. The winner of this round is Soma Homura!"

There were multiple murmurs in the crowd, concerning Zao's sudden withdrawal from the match. Soma stared at Zao's leaving form, his eyes narrowed. _'What…the hell? Why did he stop?'_ Looking ahead, he could see Crisis looking at Zao with a serious look on his face. Soma could tell Zao's reason for stopping his strike was because of Crisis, but the question was why…

With Zao and Crisis, the two were walking in the middle of a quiet hallway. Crisis created a gap between him and Zao, knowing Zao's temper. "Just to let you know, I had a good reason for stopping you. We've been called in for a change of plans. Besides, had you actually killed Soma, that would only create problems later on. We can't risk us being discovered."

Zao glanced at Crisis for a few moments before looking forward. "No matter the reason. The next time you interrupt me, I'll kill you."

'_Hmph, I would like to see you try.'_ Crisis scoffed mentally, being sure to keep silent. It was always painful whenever he annoyed Zao. "We have a time table to keep. Let's not be late." The two faded from sight as they went elsewhere to carry out their orders.

Back at the waiting room, Lily was more than ready to start the final match for the round. "Okay, will Ash and Recca please follow me." She announced.

"About time." A black haired boy said. He had on a black muscle shirt, long pants and sneakers. On his right forearm was a white casing, and higher up was several tattoos with different inscriptions. There were seven of them. Recca and Ash both followed Lily to the battlegrounds.

At the battle site, Ash and Recca kept a fair distance from each other while Violet was prepared to start the match. "Ladies and gentleman, this is the final match before the semi finals, and here we have quite the match up. On this side, we have the amazing boy wonder, ASH KETCHUM!" There was cheering on this part. "And in this corner, from Japan, hails a fiery force to be reckoned with. Please welcome RECCA HANABISHI!"

"ALRIGHT RECCA! KICK SOME ASS!" A teenage girl and boy, Fuuko and Domon respectively, shouted from the crowd. Domon was very lean and muscular, wearing a simple t-shirt and shorts. He had a short, black Mohawk, brown eyes, and a nose ring. Fuuko had a pink sleeveless shirt, tight jeans, green eyes and brown hair.

"I hope Recca doesn't get hurt…" The quieter girl, Yanagi, whispered to herself, clasping her hands. She had long light brown hair and soft brown eyes. She was dressed in a small skirt and a blue school uniform.

A man, Mikagami, sitting next to her had very long light blue hair, and darker blue eyes. He wore a white suit and an intrigued expression on his face. "This should be interesting."

On the stage, Recca held a confident smirk. "I hope you're ready, because now you're gonna face a true Hokage ninja."

"WHAAAAAAAT?" A voice shrieked throughout the gym. The quick pitter patter of footsteps could be heard making its way towards the arena from the stands. Appearing at the door was a shocking sight as a boy was wrapped in many strands of bandages burst through the entrance.

It was Naruto.

"Oh HELL no! There's no way that loser is a hokage! I've worked all my life trying to be one, and I refuse to believe that loser is a ninja, a hokage even less!" Naruto yelled. He was about to leap over the wall when he was held back by a very annoyed Sasuke and Sakura. Kakashi was standing behind them, wearing an amused expression under his mask.

"You idiot! Stop making a fool of yourself!" Sasuke chided.

"Yeah, listen to the gothic looking friend of yours and calm down." Mikagami shot coolly.

Sasuke caught the remark and wasn't very happy. "You want to say that to my face?" His glare connected with Mikagami's glare, creating sparks between them.

"Hey, hey, hey, what's with the pipsqueak calling me a fake?" Recca interrogated, irritated by the interruption.

"This _pipsqueak_ is a REAL ninja, not some washed up has-been like you!" Naruto insulted.

"A real ninja? HA! You're not a ninja! You're just some puny, loud-mouthed head case!"

"You're nothing but some punk who plays ninja! We're actual ninjas, unlike the goof troop of a team you have!"

"HEY!" Domon, Yanagi and Fuuko shouted. Mikagami was too busy trying to glare down Sasuke.

Recca pointed at Naruto incredulously. "What are you talking about!? You look like a walking tangerine, the girl with a planet for a forehead looks as though she was attacked by pink lemonade, and that emo guy probably he cuts himself more than his enemies! Face it kid, you guys look like you're cosplaying a fruit basket!"

That tore it. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!" Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura shouted. Kakashi luckily grabbed them all, stopping them from trying to maul Recca.

"Ehehehe, sorry for the trouble, please continue the match." Kakashi apologized, dragging the angry threesome away.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Mikagami. "…You and me, outside, after this match."

"Just don't whine after." Mikagami shot back.

Violet and Ash sweat-dropped massively. "That…was weird…anyway! Are both fighters ready?" Recca and Ash nodded as Violet ran off the stage. "FIGHT!"

(Shining Collection – Iceman)

Ash clenched his fist while taking on a power up stance, forming an X with his arms and bending his knees slightly. "Spirit Sync!" His skin tone darkened while the tips of his hair turned red. The expression on his face showed he was ready.

Recca extended his right arm, which had a hint of red and orange energy emanating from it. "Nadare, come on out!" From the cast on his arm emerged a serpentine dragon made of fire. Its more distinctive features were on the face, which had black eyes with yellow pupils and something similar to flowing whiskers extending from its nose. Jumping in the air, dozens of tiny fireballs shot out from Recca's palm onto the battle field.

Explosions were scattered across the arena as Ash jumped, side stepped, and dodge the attacks. Unfortunately for Ash, Recca wasn't just standing still for Ash to come for him. He was also on the move, heading towards Ash while still firing. When Ash and Recca were starting to close in, Recca closed his hand and ran at Ash. When Ash swung his fist, Recca ducked under and aimed his hand at Ash.

_BOOM!_

"Arg!" Ash was struck with a barrage of fireballs shooting from Recca's palm, receiving dozens of burns. When he opened his eyes, which were closed from the bright flash of fireballs, he noticed Recca's right arm pulled back.

"Second dragon, Saiha!" The teenager sprouted a long blade made of fire from his arm, aiming at Ash.

In a panic, Ash made himself fall back to avoid the flaming blade, carefully placing a hand on the ground to cut down his recovery time. As Recca's blade swooped over his head, Ash bounded upward and rolled back before Recca could bring his blade back. The fire dragon wielding teenager wasn't going to let Ash off the hook that easily. He prepared another blade strike at Ash and darted towards him.

Ash got up just in time to catch Recca dashing speedily towards him. Recca wasn't the only one with tricks up his sleeve. "SHADOW CLAW!"

_CLASH!_

"What the…?" Recca was startled when Ash caught the blade single handedly, which possessed a black covering in the shape of a claw. At the corner of his eye, he saw Ash's free hand about to strike him down with another Shadow Claw. He hurriedly jumped back to dodge the swipe, then ran forward to perform a spinning slash. Ash ducked to avoid the blade attack, only to catch Recca flashing his right palm at the boy after spinning. "Nadare!"

"Not this time!" Ash jumped in the air to dodge the stream of fire balls. He kicked his feet outward, using the air boost function of his shoes to perform a midair dash at Recca. "Shadow Claw!"

_SLASH!_

Recca didn't get the chance to avoid getting hit, earning a slash across his chest. The fire ninja took the brunt of the attack, but not without a reason. "Third dragon, Homura!" Recca shouted. A spiral of fire encircled his right arm, boosting its power considerably.

_SMASH!_

Ash sucked in a sharp breath as the blow struck him in the stomach directly. The attack sent him flying a few feet and skidding across the ground. While sliding, Ash pushed himself off hard enough to bounce back on his feet. Crossing his arms defensively, Ash activated the Shadow Claw in both his hands as he dashed towards his opponent.

Recca considered using Nadare again, but Ash might dodge it like last time. Instead, he decided to engage in close combat as well. "Let's do it, Homura!" He yelled, allowing the third dragon to envelope his arm with fire. Once in range, Ash sent a series of fast swipes and palm strikes at Recca, who either blocked with his flaming arm or dodged it. Ash swung his darkness powered hand at Recca, only for the fiery teen to duck under the attack. "Eat this!" Recca thrust his arm at Ash's side.

Unfortunately, Ash anticipated this attack and captured it with his other hand. Before Recca could react, Ash curled his free hand into a tight fist, packing it with even more dark energy. "Shadow Fist!"

_POW!_

Taking a heavy blow to the face, Recca was knocked back a few feet. However, that wasn't enough to cause any significant injures to the hokage leader. Recca thrust his arm at Ash from a distance, sending a long stream of fire in the shape of a whip.

"Arg!" Ash grunted, blocking the attack. The flame whip latched onto his arm, grappling him. "Wha…!?"

Recca held tightly on the fire whip and started spinning while Ash was hooked, making the trainer spin wildly in the air. "Time to send you flying!" Once Recca gained enough momentum, he canceled the fire whip and sent Ash flying towards the far wall.

'_If he thinks he can get me this easily, then he's crazy!'_ Ash focused Satoshi's mana into his right arm, which was starting to be veiled with darkness aura. "SHADOW WHIP!" Suddenly, a long, thick black line extended from Ash's arm and wrapped around one of the ceiling lights, which was surprisingly sturdy. With a tug, he stopped himself from flying off and started swinging towards Recca, this time striking back, hard. Once the direction was set, he stopped the Shadow Whip and sent the mana towards his feet. "Shadow Kick!"

' _Did he just copy off my Flame Whip?'_ Recca brought his arms upward to block the attack, planning a way to counter against the Shadow Kick.

However, Ash was just about to hit when he kicked his foot as hard as he could, suddenly stopping in mid air and dropping right below Recca's guard. Recca's eyes widened as Ash pulled back his fist.

_WHOOSH!_

Ash's attack missed by inches as Recca side stepped and flashed his palm at Ash. Recca called out his attack. "Nadare!"

_BOOM!_

Ash managed to roll out of the way in the nick of time, avoiding a close range fireball attack. He continued to roll until he was on his hands and feet. Right before Recca's fireball barrage could hit him, he pushed himself into the air and towards Recca. "SHADOW CLAW!"

Recca was prepared for this one. "SAIHA!"

_CLASH!_

Both attacks were deflected by each other, given they were of equal strength. Once Ash landed, he and Recca began clashing against each other furiously, neither fighter willing to give their opponent the upper hand. It was an epic battle of flame verses shadow.

Minutes past and there were no signs of shifting balance. It was a standstill. Seeing this, Recca jumped back, dodging Ash's spin kick. _'Man, this guy is starting to be a pain in the neck.'_ He glanced at his right arm, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. _'I didn't want to use this…but if I want anything to change, I'll have to do it…'_ Recca curled his fist as he called out. "It's your turn! Fourth dragon, Setsuna!" emerging from his arm cast was a dragon that looked similar to the other ones, except it only had closed eye.

Ash growled under his breath. He didn't like the feeling he was getting from that dragon. It felt…evil.

Violet recognized the dragon from yesterday and was quick to announce a warning. "Everyone! Please close your eyes!" She yelled, closing her own eyes.

'_Why do we have to close our eyes?'_ Ash wondered. His eyes followed to Setsuna's closed eye.

And then, it opened.

Ash's eyes widened as he stared at the eye. It had a very daunting gaze, making him step back in surprise. This didn't look good.

"_Shun en!_" The dragon growled.

_FLASH!_

A shrill cry of pain echoed through the large stadium.

Cerulean City Hospital – Misty's Room

Misty's eyes suddenly snapped open as she shot up in her bed. _"Misty? Is something the matter?"_ Kasumi asked worriedly.

"It's Ash. He's in trouble." Misty placed a hand over her heart. "I can feel his pain."

Kasumi raised an eyebrow. _"You can feel his pain from…your heart?"_

"I had this kind of connection with him for awhile, but kept it to myself. It's kind of like a sixth sense, but just for Ash."

"_Hmm…"_ Kasumi never thought of such a concept before. It made her wonder if she ever had that ability in her past life. _"We should probably see what's going on. Can you walk?"_

"Yeah, let's go." Misty stood up and walked hurriedly out of the room.

Cerulean City Gym – Arena

The crowd gaped in shock as Ash fell to his knees, being set ablaze by Setsuna's Shun en attack. The attack gave Ash very severe burns, and being that Satoshi was spirit-synced with Ash, he felt it too. His body was going through intense pain as Ash tried regaining his footing.

"You're pretty good, but it would be best if you gave up. I don't want to give you any really serious injuries." Recca warned.

'_Damn it…he's too strong…!'_ Ash thought grimly, gritting his teeth. Before the tournament, he felt so ready to make it to the top, beat Soma, and get the shards and his hat back. However, he would have to get past Recca…which was starting to seem more and more impossible. He could feel Satoshi's mana waning from the lethal fire attack. Not only that, but Ash's stamina was dropping, along with his body and morale.

"Ash has fallen! I will now start the countdown!" Violet announced. "1…2…"

"Come on Ash, get up! Get up!" Brock pleaded.

"_Don't let up Satoshi!"_ Takeshi yelled.

"_Easy for him to say…"_ Satoshi muttered. He hated to admit it, but the burns caused him spiritual damage, making it harder for him to channel mana to Ash. The situation was looking grim.

"3…4…"

"ASH!"

"_SATOSHI!"_

"GET UP AND FIGHT!"

Ash cracked open an eye weakly, glancing at the owner of the voice. "Misty…?"

Satoshi's eyes widened as he saw Misty's spirit, realizing that Kasumi called out to him. "Kasumi…"

"5…6…"

Right then, a thought occurred to Satoshi, something he never considered until Kasumi and Misty's call. It struck a sense of alarm in him. _"Ash…we cannot lose this fight. There is one good reason for this."_

'_What is it?'_

"_If we lose to Recca, then Misty or Brock will have to fight him too. If that scenario happens…"_

Ash's eyes widened at the thought once the danger registered into his head. _'There's a chance Recca might use Setsuna on them!'_

"7…8…9—"

'_I won't let that happen!'_ Ash immediately jumped to his feet, just in time to avoid losing by countdown. He winced at the sudden pain that shot through his body.

"Ash has stood on his feet! This match will resume!" Violet said, glad that Ash was alright.

Recca had a look on his face reflecting both surprise and amazement. "You know, for a moment, I actually thought I had you. I'm glad I was wrong." He extended his fist, prepared to continue combat.

Ash closed his eyes for a beat, contemplating. _'If I don't win this match, I will be letting down my friends. This guy is powerful, and I don't want Brock or Misty to get hurt…'_ He clenched his trembling fist tightly. Once his eyes opened, Ash a whole new level of determination, one set on winning the tournament. "You're not going to beat me that easily! BRING IT ON!"

Recca formed a tight fist in his hands, bursting with battle adrenaline and excitement. "That's the spirit!"

(Never End – Siam Shade)

Recca stepped back defensively as he held out his right hand as Ash running towards him. It was time to get advanced. "Nadare, Saiha, combine!" Fire balls shaped as blades flew at Ash in swarms.

"Shadow Whip!" Ash lashed the dark energy whip at the fire blades, knocking them down with each swipe as he advanced.

_SLASH!_

Recca slid back after receiving a whip slash across his chest. "Saiha, Homura, combine!" At the call, a fire whip lashed out at Ash. This time, however, the whip had a bladed edge, which increased its striking power.

_CLASH!_

Both whips connected and created a sharp spark of conflict between the two powers. The two fighters circled each other continuously to find a good opening, only for their opponent to parry the attack and elongate the cycle.

After 3 minutes of exchanging attacks, Recca decided to bring out— "Setsuna!" he called out. At the name mentioned, everyone in the stadium closed their eyes.

"_Ash, close your eyes! If we look into that dragon's eyes, we're finished!" Satoshi warned. _

'_I know, I know!'_ Ash did as instructed and shut his eyes tight. A thought suddenly occurred to him. "If my eyes are closed, how will I be able to know when Recca—"

_WHAM!_

Ash caught a flying knee attack to his chin, sending him off the ground. The boy recovered and landed on his feet, wincing at the intense pain. He was about to open his eyes to strike back when he realized the dragon may still be out. _'Satoshi, come on, help me out here!'_

"Just follow the sound with your ears. It's not that hard."

'_Satoshi…you do realize I only trained for a week, and even then, we didn't even practice that kind of training.' _Ash growled mentally, jumping back incase Recca was still on the move. _'Just be my eyes.'_

"_And get MY body burned? No thanks!"_

'_You're a freaking ghost! What body?'_

It took a moment for the fact to sink into Satoshi's mind. _"…Oh…right…"_

'…_You're pretty dumb for a warrior.'_

"_Just shut up and listen to whatever I say."_ Satoshi opened his ghostly eyes, and sure enough, Setsuna was still out. _"Quick, duck and punch upward!"_ He shouted hastily. Ash quickly dropped low to the ground, feeling something whiz by his head.

_POW!_

"Agh…!" Recca stumbled back and clutched onto his stomach. The blow took him by surprise. He tried a low sweep with his leg, but Ash leapt over and towards Recca with his shoulder.

_WHAM!_

The hokage ninja was knocked on his back from the shoulder rush. _'Hmm…looks like he found a way past Setsuna. Time to let out the big guns.' _Recca recalled Setsuna back into his arm.

"_Ash, Recca has called back his dragon. You can open your eyes now."_ Satoshi informed his host. Ash slowly opened his eyes to see Recca standing across from him. There was a pause as both fighters tried to get their second wind.

"Man, those two are in a league of their own…" Domon said, sweating with anticipation.

"Recca seems to have the upper hand in strength, but Ash proves his resilience and flexibility." Mikagami said sagely.

"Does that mean they're equal?" Yanagi asked.

"To some extent. But if it were me instead of Recca, this battle would've already been over. His moves are too sloppy and there were several chances he could've struck down Ash. Recca still has a ways to go."

'_Why do I get the feeling Mikagami is being a smart ass…?'_ Recca growled at the thought. He looked up to notice Ash lunging towards him with the Shadow Claw. "Fifth dragon, Madoka!"

_CLASH!_

"What…?" Both Ash and Satoshi gasped in surprise as the Shadow Claw was deflected by a red, transparent shield.

"That ain't all he can do! Eat this!" Recca yelled, flashing his hand at Ash.

The moment Ash landed, his legs were suddenly encased in the barrier, immobilizing him. He tried hitting it, but only ended up hurting his own hand. "I can't move…! Grr…!"

"I didn't want to do this, but I have to use my ultimate dragon." Recca stood back and held out his hand. Due to his continuous use of dragons, Recca's body was reaching its limit. Using this attack was hard enough as it is. _'I'll use a low enough power so it won't kill Ash, but it'll definitely knock him out.'_

'_I have to find a way out! Come on Ash, think, think!' _For Ash, his only real techniques were the Shadow Kick, Shadow Claw, Shadow Fist and Shadow Whip. With his feet glued to the floor, his options were severely limited. What made it worse was the fact he was running on practically zero mana. He only had enough to push for one more move, but what would it be? What could possibly get him out of his situation?

"Let's go all the way…Seventh dragon, KOKUU!" Recca shouted. At that instant, a dragon with one eye and a sharp row of teeth flew out of Recca's arm and stayed high in the air.

"What? He's using Kokuu? He's going to blow that kid to bits!" Fuuko screeched fearfully.

Mikagami narrowed his eyes. _'Looks like they're both at their limits. Recca knows this, which is why he's going to end it now.'_

Ash struggled as he saw Kokuu charging up a fire ball in his mouth._ 'Come on…I have to get out…!'_

"And…FIRE!"

_WHOOSH!_

A devastating laser beam shot from the fire ball and towards Ash at a blinding pace. Everything seemed to go into slow motion at that moment.

In that same instant, Ash closed his eyes and clapped his hands together. Something at the back of his mind gave him a subtle message, enough to get it across what he had to do. "SHADOW SHIFT!"

_CRASH! BOOM!_

The beam shot through the floor where Ash stood, erupting the space in an explosion. Everyone gasped at the amount of destruction caused by Kokuu. Almost half of the Arena on Ash's side was completely demolished by the beam. Smoke and debris were scattered across the battlefield.

Ash was nowhere in sight.

"Where did he go…?" Recca's shoulders were slumped from the extreme use of energy he put into the battle. The last thing he wanted was for Ash to appear—

"Take this!" Ash shouted, leaping from the floor in front of Recca.

'_He…jumped from my shadow!?'_ Recca only had time to gasp before Ash's attack connected.

_SMASH!_

Ash's fist slammed into Recca's chin with a fierce uppercut. Recca was knocked into the air and on his back with a thud. Just then, the Spirit-Sync dissipated, leaving both Ash and Satoshi completely exhausted. He could barely stand up given how badly his legs were trembling.

From Violet's point of view, it was clear to tell Recca was knocked out.

"And the winner for the final round in this tournament is ASH KETCHUM!" There was a loud roar throughout the stadium, all the pent up excitement and suspense from the battle exploding into a dramatic cheer. Misty, Brock and Pikachu ran to Ash's side, as did Mikagami, Yanagi, Fuuko and Domon did for Recca.

Misty held onto Ash and lifted him so his arm was around her shoulder. "Ash, are you alright? Ash?"

"I…think I'll live…just really tired…" Ash said slowly, still trying to catch his breath.

"You put up a good fight, man. We're proud of ya." Brock said with a smile.

"Pikapi, pika!" Pikachu cheered.

"Thanks guys." Ash smiled. When he looked up, he saw Lily walking up to them.

"That was, like, such a great match! Congrats!" Lily said enthusiastically.

"It wasn't easy, that's for sure." Ash sighed with relief.

"By the way, I just wanted to let you know that you guys have made it to the semi finals. I wanted to give you the list of pairings for tomorrow's round." Lily flipped through her clipboard until she landed on the desired page. "Ah, here we go…according to this…" After she read the listings, Ash, Misty and Brock were shocked beyond belief.

The pairings were as followed.

Soma versus Brock and Ash versus Misty.

* * *

Great…gods! About freaking time I finished. It took me several months, MONTHS to finish this chapter. I really do hope you appreciate the hard work I put in for you guys. It would give me great satisfaction if you can review and let me know how you like this chapter. 


	15. Prelude to glory! Part 3

_**Chapter 15 - Prelude to Glory - Part 3**_

Cerulean City - Office

Soma sat in a comfortable leather seat, his hands folded against his mouth. His glasses reflected the ceiling light, showing a mirrored reflection of the three Sensational Sisters. Each of them had equally surprised and angry faces as Soma had finished declaring his decision. "…To conclude, as of this moment, the no weapon's rule will be lifted, and in place will come new rulings and arena location suited to the top four, including myself."

"I can't agree with that, Soma! Our sister is in that tournament!" Lily shouted.

Soma eyed Lily at the corner of his glasses, showing disinterest. "…And your point?"

"My point is that I don't want my sister to get killed!"

"That's right! It was crazy enough to let her enter this tournament, but for weapons to be involved!? Ridiculous!" Violet joined Lily, glaring down at Soma.

Soma tossed a warning glance at the two girls. "Might I advise you to stay in your seat and remind you who is in charge of this operation? Keep in mind, because of you three, the gym was well on its way to bankruptcy and would've been closed down. Had I arrived a few days later, there would no longer be a Cerulean City Gym. I can easily take most of the earnings and let you go homeless." Lily and Violet growled under their breaths as they sat back into their seats. Daisy was the only one who seemed calm. "I know what it is like to have family that is important to you. You treasure their safety and wouldn't want them to venture into danger. However, don't think for a second Misty isn't aware of this. I don't know much about Misty, nor the group she follows, but I have a fair idea about them. She knows that there's danger in the path she follows, but it would be an even bigger danger to stay secluded, holding onto her dear sister's hands. You've seen for yourself how well she can handle herself. All I'm doing is raising the bar a bit."

"Soma…" Daisy started, carefully thinking over her thoughts, "Why are you doing all of this for us? Not to mention, if you really wanted weapons in the tournament, why couldn't you have done it sooner?"

Soma closed his eyes. "I had happened to just come back from a small…squabble, when I saw the eviction notice. I would've probably ignored it if I hadn't overheard your conversation over the matter. While two of you were arguing over whose fault it was, the only sensible one of the Sensational sisters concentrated on trying to resolve the matter." His eyes opened and were directed at Daisy. "It's not necessarily that I felt sorry for you, nor is it out of good charity. If you must know, you reminded me of someone. That strong, selfless will that spurs you on. You reminded me of a debt I owe, which is my only reason for helping you. Now, as for lifting the no weapon rule this late in the game, I prefer to keep that to myself. Is that a satisfactory answer, Daisy?"

"It's good enough. Might I make one request?"

"Shoot."

"Please enforce the no killing policy as much as possible"

"Consider it done. The meeting's adjourned. You three are dismissed." The girls stood up and left, worries and concerns still flooding their minds. Once they were gone, Soma kicked back in his chair, staring at the ceiling. "So, are you gonna just sit there hiding, or are you going to spread word about the new rulings?"

"Heh, demanding as always, Soma. Leave it to me." A young voice spoke from outside the open window. It was too dark to define the person, though by the voice, the boy's age was around 12. There was a quick pitter-patter of footsteps, indicating the boy's departure.

Soma released as sigh, wearing a wistful expression. "Am I doing the right thing…? What would you have done…little sister?"

Cerulean Gym – Ash and Brock's room

The tension was thick. While Ash was facing his worst match up, Brock would be facing the same person who crushed him and his friends, a vizier. They lay on their backs, facing the ceiling while cradling their heads into their arms. Pikachu rested on Ash's stomach, depressed by his partner's troubled gaze. Silence filled the void, which was getting on a certain, hot-headed spirit's nerves. _"What's wrong with you, Ash? I can understand Brock's tension and anxiety, but you're being just plain weird."_ Satoshi complained.

"I'm not being weird. I'm about to fight Misty for crying out loud!" Ash reasoned.

"…_And?"_ Clearly, Satoshi didn't get it.

"And I don't want to fight her. I don't mine Pokémon battles, but I would never lay my hands on Misty like that."

"Though I'm sure you wouldn't mind laying your hands on her in _other_ ways." Brock grinned.

"I didn't mean it like that!" Ash yelled, turning red.

"_Ignore Satoshi. I can understand how you feel. Facing a friend is never an easy task."_ Takeshi said.

"_Don't make me come over there…"_ Satoshi threatened.

"I don't know what I should do. I can't just give up and let Misty have the win, but I don't want to hurt Misty either. What options do I have left?"

Brock glanced over at Ash, watching the young boy's serious face. It was truly a dilemma for poor Ash. But then, there was a detail Brock had forgotten previously. "Say Ash, didn't Daisy say something about only needing to reach top four in order to get our stuff back? Maybe you don't have to fight Misty after all."

"That's a great idea! I completely forgot about that!" Ash exclaimed. He stood up, feeling good about the idea. "I should probably go right now."

"You might wanna wait a sec before doing that." A voice spoke from outside.

Ash stopped and turned to face the window, seeing a shadowed image of a boy. The stranger was sitting on a long spear embedded into the wall. "Who are you?"

"I'm merely a messenger sent by the tournament organizer. You can call me Zansei."

"Alright, Zansei, what's the message?" Ash asked.

"It's about some new rulings that will be taking place tomorrow and the day after, assuming that you're staying. Care to listen?"

Ash shrugged. "It doesn't really matter. I mean, once we get the stuff back, there's no longer any reason for us to stay."

"Is that so? Do you really think everyone else feels the same way?"

"I don't see why not. Wasn't that the point of us entering in the first place?"

"It wouldn't hurt to see how your friends feel about it. Also, just because you want to take the easy way out, doesn't mean everyone else has to. Don't assume everyone wants the same thing you do. That would be just plain arrogant."

"Hey, who do you think you are? Stop talking like you know everything!"

"Relax, man. I never said I know everything, but rather don't jump to your own conclusions. Brock was it? Do you plan on finishing the tournament, or leaving early with Ash here?"

"It's not difficult. You'll be leaving with me and Misty, right Brock?"

Brock remained silent for a beat, his expression slowly changing to an apologetic look. "Well, I was hoping to finish off the rest of this tournament and see how far I get."

Ash was surprised with the answer. "Really?"

"Yeah. I wonder if Misty feels the same way I do about it. Even though you might be here to get the shards and hat back, we have our own reasons for entering as well. Of course, it's your decision on whether you want us to stay or not, but I honestly want to see this battle through"

"Brock…" Ash felt somewhat disappointed. Not about Brock, but for himself. It showed how much he knew about his friends.

"What about you Ash? Do you still plan on getting out of the tournament, or will you see it through with Brock?" Zansei questioned.

Ash closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I won't abandon my friends. If Brock wants to stay, I'll stay with him. But as for me participating…"

"No one is forcing you to do anything you don't want to do. However you decide, you must accept the consequences of that action before going along with it. Simple enough to understand, don't you think?"

"I guess so. I'm going to take a walk for a bit." Ash then left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Pika…" Pikachu pouted, his ears drooping.

"Poor Ash…" Brock wanted to help Ash feel better, but he knew it was something Ash would have to work out between Misty and himself.

"As I hear it, you're going to be fighting Soma in the next round, right? That's going to be trouble and a half for you." Zansei warned.

"Tell me about it. I know I've trained hard and made great improvements, but I'm not sure if my strength can still compare to Soma's."

"You guys sure are a bunch of downers. Thankfully, the tournament organizer and I thought ahead."

This caught Brock's attention. "Thought ahead? About what?"

"Just come to the window and see for yourself." Zansei grinned, pointing downward.

Brock did as instructed and walked over to the window, only to gasp in surprise at the sight before him. "It's you!"

"Yo, no eyes! Are you ready to train, or what?" Naruto huffed, looking impatient.

The back of the Cerulean Gym

Ash glanced left and right as he arrived at the spot he trained with Misty at last night. He'd hoped to see her training tonight, but the gym leader was nowhere to be found. "Maybe she decided to sleep in for the night…" Ash pondered despairingly.

"_Hmph, I don't see what's so troubling. If you're worried about getting beat up by a girl, just destroy her before the tournament."_ Satoshi shot stubbornly.

Ash was growing infuriated at this point. "Satoshi! That isn't the—"

"_I know that isn't the problem. I was just messing with you."_ Satoshi's ghostly body sat crossed legged on the floor. His eyes narrowed ahead, wearing a sagely expression. _"When I was still alive, and Kasumi and I were…on better terms, we always fought. I don't mean fighting just by words, but also physically."_

"That sounds really brutal. Didn't you guys get hurt?" Ash asked, getting curious. He sat down next to Satoshi.

"_Yes, but we never gave each other fatal wounds. Rather, we were just bruised up a bit."_ Satoshi's eyes held a mysterious gleam as he began to reminisce. _"Each time we fought, it was never out of malice, but rather understanding. It was just who we were. From my experience, as long as you keep that understanding while you battle each other, the outcome should leave your current relationship intact, or at least release some pent-up tension. If anything, enjoy those precious moments you spend with Misty. In time, you'll grow to realize some of the simplest of things can be the most valuable moments of your life."_

Ash was both surprised and impressed with Satoshi's words of advice. Once he thought about it, Satoshi made some very good points. Even though Ash still disliked the idea of fighting Misty, as long as the two came into an understanding, their friendship could still stay strong. He still wanted to talk to Misty, but Satoshi helped to lift his spirits, which in itself was a rare treat. "You're right, Satoshi. Thanks for the pep talk."

"_I didn't do anything special. Just try to find Misty and get this matter solved already."_

"Sounds good. Now I gotta find Misty and talk to her." Ash stood up and spun around, only to stop dead in his tracks.

What was Misty doing standing behind them?

"WAAAH!" Ash fell back in surprise, staring at Misty's smiling face. "M-M-Misty!"

Satoshi coughed in surprise, embarrassment creeping up on him. _"D-dammit! What's with you sneaking up on us?"_

"_It's your fault for not noticing sooner."_ Kasumi pointed out.

"Well, this beats having to look for you. At least you know what I want to talk to you about." Ash said, feeling a little bit relieved.

"Yeah. It looks like we're about to face each other again, but it won't be a Pokémon battle this time." Misty closed her eyes, smiling to herself. "Ash…thank you."

Ash was puzzled at this. "What are you thanking me for?"

"Well, to put it simply…" A small tint of pink rose in Misty's cheeks as she spoke with slight shyness, "You reminded me of how lucky I am to travel with a great person like you. Here you are, worried about our upcoming match. I can't help but feel really special for being so important."

Ash's face grew incredibly red. It was unexpected that Misty cared so much over what he thought was common knowledge. "It's not that big of a deal. I mean, we've been friends for years. I would never hurt you intentionally. That's what I was afraid of doing for our next match. I really don't want to lose the friendship we got going right now, especially since we haven't traveled together in so long."

"To be honest, I felt the same way a minute ago. I actually came here to find you and tell you that I was going to drop from the tournament. But, after hearing Satoshi's words, I felt more comfortable about fighting in the tournament. I really feel that this fight isn't really about fighting each other, but for each other!"

'_A fight that isn't about fighting each other, but for each other…'_ Right then, Ash understood exactly what Satoshi was telling him. As long as two friends have that understanding about each other, they can battle each other while being friends. He felt foolish for not realizing it sooner. The concept was the same as Pokémon battles. "You're right…you're absolutely right, Misty!" Ash suddenly beamed; his excitement for battling emerging from within. "I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner!" He grabbed onto Misty's hand, surprising the red haired gym leader. "Let's both do our best and still be friends!"

Misty recovered from her surprise and nodded with a smile. "Don't think I'm going to go easy on you just because this isn't a Pokémon battle. I'm gonna beat you!"

Ash smirked. "The same goes for you, Misty." The two stood still for a beat, enjoying their newfound confidence.

That is, until a loud groan interrupted their moment.

"_Are you two done? I'm getting sick of your sappy little moment."_ Satoshi scoffed.

Misty blinked, and then grinned sneakily. "That reminds me. We have someone else to thank for this, right Ash?"

Ash caught Misty's wink and instantly caught on. "Oh yeah, that's right."

The two turned to face Satoshi, and with a sugary sweet voice, spoke at the same time. "Thank you, Satoshi!"

Satoshi was clearly embarrassed. _"There's no reason to thank me! I merely stated what was true. Don't think for a second I was trying to be nice!"_

"_Aww, isn't that cute! Satoshi's embarrassed."_ Kasumi cooed, appearing beside Misty. Everyone laughed at poor Satoshi's expense.

"_I DEFINITELY don't want to hear that from you! And dammit, stop laughing!" _Satoshi exclaimed.

"Heh, looks like Satoshi has a sensitive side to him after all." Misty pointed out.

"Who would've guessed he was such as softie." Ash said, smiling at a very embarrassed Satoshi.

"_You little…why I oughta…you all make me sick!"_ And with that, Satoshi disappeared, locking himself in his mental chamber.

"_Hahaha, well that certainly made me feel better!"_ Kasumi laughed.

"Well, I'm gonna get going. Got to get in some extra training for tomorrow. Don't slack off, Ash."

"Heh, like I will. See ya Misty." Ash waved goodbye to Misty as she went off in an unspecified direction. He smiled to himself. _'Something tells me this is going to be a great battle…'_

"Well, well! Looks like you've gotten little problem resolved." A voice spoke from behind.

Ash whirled around quickly, surprised to hear the unexpected voice. "Recca!"

"What's up?" Recca greeted casually. Behind him was the group that cheered him on previously, followed by two other people. One was an older woman with dark clothes and hair, Kagero. Next to her was a young boy with black hair and light clothing, Koganei.

"Aw man, of all the battles, I had to miss the one where Recca gets creamed." Koganei pouted.

_WHACK!_

"Shut it, kid!" Recca chided, smacking Koganei over the head.

"Aw, don't be mad! I'd be angry too if I were the one looking so pathetic in front of Yanagi!" Koganei pulled down an eyelid and stuck his tongue at Recca.

"Grr...! GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE BRAT!" Recca roared with rage, chasing Koganei in circles.

"Err…anyway, why are you guys here? I figured you would've been gone by now." Ash sweat-dropped as Recca sighed and gave up chasing Koganei. He noticed an uncanny resemblance between the two. Brothers perhaps?

"Well, we would've been gone if someone hadn't ask for a favor. Some guy named Zansei requested that some of us could help you train for your next two battles. You're a cool guy, so I thought it would be a good idea. But in return, could you show me some of your skills as well? Your attacks were freaking awesome."

"Mine were awesome? You're the one who had me on the ropes! I barely got a win out of that battle!" Ash said. The two laughed.

"Well, how about it? You ready for a little nighttime training?"

"I'm always ready!" Ash proclaimed, getting into position.

"Alright then, let's get started."

Cerulean City Gym, Soma's office

Soma fell asleep in the leather chair, a snot bubble pulsing out of his nose. While sleeping, he didn't notice someone sneaking in, nor did he expect a sharp object stab into the snot bubble.

_POP!_

"ACK!" Soma fell back out of surprise, crashing onto the ground. "I wasn't sleeping! I was just thinking really, really hard!" The vizier sputtered out of habit. When he got up to view the intruder, he frowned. "Oh, it's just you."

"That's some reaction you had. Memories back from your old training days? Even after all these years, you're still a slacker." Zansei said. The boy, though small, was at least an inch or two taller than Zero and Kirara. Like the other viziers, his skin had a tan color to it. He had a sleeveless black shirt that was cut halfway down and long black pants. On his knees, elbows, and knuckles of his fingerless biker gloves were steel guards. He twirled his long lance and sheathed it into the holder on his back. His brown eyes showed signs of maturity and knowledge, combined with youth.

"You're not exactly old enough to start lecturing me. Enough of that, what's the situation with our prized three fighters?"

"I've decided to go ahead and get them some training instructors. I got Naruto's group to help out Brock while Misty has Farah and Jam giving her pointers. Recca is doing the same for Ash at this moment."

"Wait a sec, I never said anything about that. What made you decide to do that?"

"I've got a gut feeling about them, and not just because they're the host of the legendary five guardians. I think their potential strength is not to be disregarded."

Soma had a thoughtful look on his face. "You too, huh?"

"After all, wasn't that the main reason for this tournament idea?"

"That's right. After all, collecting battle data will help us in the future, should those kids become a threat. If they make an enemy of us, we'll at least have an advantage in the knowledge area. I would never go this far for just anyone. My small brawl with them in the forest a week ago made me suspicious. The very fact they not only have the GS ball, but the shards and the spirits within them automatically made them important to our entire ordeal. They can't be ignored under any circumstances. Once this tournament is over, and all of their battle data is calibrated, I'll need you to hunt down any other viziers you meet and deliver the message and statistics. And also…" Soma's face grew grim at the next point he was about to make. "Zao and Crisis…I have a really bad feeling about those guys. I don't know why they were in the tournament, but it couldn't have been just for the prize money."

"I know what you mean." Zansei leaned against a wall, also worried. "And what's worse, I doubt this would be the last time we see those two. Shall I also see to it the others are alerted about them?"

"Of course. For now, observe them well, as will I. After this tournament, we'll continue our search for the others as instructed. But for now, let's just enjoy the ride. Thanks for helping out."

"Don't sweat it. We're all in the same boat. Besides, we go way back. See ya!" Zansei walked out of the office, leaving Soma to continue 'thinking' in privacy.

Cerulean City – Open Field

It was a bright day in Cerulean City, perfect weather for where the next few matches would take place. The area was flat with many boulders in place as obstacles. The rocks were big enough for a slightly sizable person to hide behind for cover. To those born of Cerulean City, it was unknown how such an elaborate battlefield suddenly appeared over night. Soma knew better though, and it showed with his grin. Good old Zansei came through.

The audience inside the Cerulean Gym found a new change of scenery. For one, there was a large four-way screen in the middle of the stage area, attached to a strong cable from the ceiling. On the screen, it showed Violet stepping in view, holding a microphone in her hand. "Welcome everyone to the semi-final rounds of the first annual martial arts tournament! Before we start, we would like to inform you of the new rulings that will be taking place!" There was a murmur within the audience, everyone unsure of what to expect. "The first change is in the no-weapon restriction. Weapons are now allowed for official use. However, the prohibition of killing your opponent is still in place. Secondly, Pokémon are now considered usable in this tournament, but if the trainer falls unconscious, that person loses, as per original rules. The third new ruling is the lifting of the ring-out rule. As long as the fighter's stray away from residential areas or areas protected by the Pokémon Protection Agency, there are no barriers. These are the rules for special fights known as Rupture Battles, only legal within certain tournaments. With that out of the way, it is time to get started with today's semi-final matches!" The crowd roared with approval and excitement, anxious to see today's results.

"For the first match, we have a very exciting pair that will face off for a chance in the finals!" On the field, two people could be seen coming into view, standing a fair amount of distance away from each other. "Our prized battlers for this match are SOMA HOMURA and BROCK SLATE!"

Soma twirled his giant sword expertly, having it land along his shoulders. His black shades covered his anticipating eyes. "I hope you came prepared, Brock. I won't be going easy on you like I did in the Viridian forest."

Brock pointed at Soma, wearing a confident smirk. "And I hope you got good insurance, because you're not leaving this field without a beating!"

"Now that's what I want to hear!" The fire Vizier flexed his eager hands within his metallic gauntlets.

Violet, who was at a safe distance, raised her free hand in the air. "Alright, first round in the semi-final match, Brock versus Soma! Ready….? FIGHT!"

(Still more fighting – Final Fantasy VII)

Soma started off the battle immediately. "Flame Slash!" Swinging his sword, the vizier sent several trails of fire at Brock, who jumped away from the fiery attack.

Brock landed on top of a rock and was ready to counter. "Go, Mudkip! Hit him with Water Gun!" He called out, summoning Mudkip. The Mud Fish Pokémon launched a stream of high pressure water. Soma used his sword to block the attack, causing steam to envelop his surroundings.

"You shouldn't underestimate me, boy! I have battle experience beyond your years!" Brock didn't catch on until he saw Soma appear at his side. "Simple tricks don't work on Viziers!" Soma pulled back his blade, ready to swing.

"NOW!" Brock yelled quickly.

"What?" Soma felt the ground shake underneath him, only having a moment to look down before a stone fist shot from underground.

_WHAM!_

"ARG!" Soma received a powerful uppercut from Geodude, sending him flying upward.

"Mudkip, use Mud Shot!" Brock commanded. Soma was struck by a barrage of mud bullets while in midair, though the damage was insignificant to Soma's tough body. While that was going on, Brock didn't waste any time taking the battle up a level. "Spirit-sync! Wind Fist!" Soma landed on the ground, only to get struck by a powered up punch from Brock. The blow was powerful enough to make Soma slide all the way to a boulder, hitting it roughly.

'_Hmm, Wind Fist, huh? I haven't forgotten that move, nor did I forget how his abilities work.'_ Soma recovered and jumped backwards over the rock, which was soon shattered by Brock's wind-powered punch. He continuously stepped back while analyzing Brock's combat style. _'Takeshi, he's definitely the Nature guardian for good reason. Nature's element specializes in enhancements and power boosting, using necessary sub-elements to give special power-ups. So far, Brock only learned how to control wind, the necessary component for speed boosting. The wind decreases the wind resistance and weight of the user while veiling any part of the body with formless protection. Truly, this can be a frightening ability if used correctly. However…'_ Soma grinned evilly when Brock made a long punch and missed, leaving him open, _'His veil of wind is no match for my blazing power!'_

_SLAM!_

Soma smashed Brock's face with the back of his metal fist, sending him tumbling across the earth. Brock shook his head, getting a huge headache from the attack. "It's going to take a lot more than that to take me down." As he stood up, his fingers felt his Pokébelt for Onix's Pokéball. "Go, Onix!" The giant stone snake emerged, releasing a deafening roar. "Iron Tail!" At the command, Onix charged after Soma while powering up its tail for a strike.

"Just great, the snake's back." Soma unsheathed his sword and held it behind him, preparing for a crushing swing. Small bits of flames started enveloping his burning body. "Burning…RA—WHAT!?" He gasped when Geodude grappled Soma from behind, holding the vizier tightly.

Brock's smile couldn't have been any wider. "Geodude, harden!"

Geodude's body toughened up, making things more difficult for the tanned tiger vizier. "…Damn it!"

_SMACK!_

Soma and Geodude was sent flipping high in the air, spinning uncontrollably. There were loud crashes from the two, their heavy bodies indenting the earth. When Soma stood up, anger could be seen clearly in his eyes, one of the lenses of his glasses cracked. "When I get my hands on that brat, I'll break him in half!" He emerged out of the hole, only to notice something strange.

The other Pokémon were gone, and Brock stood at a distance, his arms crossed. There was a small, cocky smile on his face. This only served to infuriate Soma more. Was the fool so daring to go against him without Pokémon? "I'll show you, human!" Soma stepped forward, prepare to charge in blazing when he stopped, mentally slapping myself. _'What am I, an idiot? It's obvious that's what he wants. Use your head…' _Upon closer investigation, he saw clearly the kind of trap that was laid out for him. There were three holes in the ground, one small, one medium sized, and one huge hole. _'The burrow strategy? Not the most subtle strategy in the world, but it does put me in a disadvantage. If I run after him, I'll be attacked from all sides. Hmmm…how can I get to him without being up to my knees in Pokémon?' _He gauged the distance between him and Soma, assessing the situation. After deliberating, he bore a wicked smirk. "Hehehe, I got it…" Soma sheathed his sword and started running towards Brock. "Gun Flare!"

'_Aha, he fell for it! What an idiot!'_ Brock thought victoriously, dodging the flames shooting from Soma's gauntlets. "Onix, attack!" Onix roared as it broke through the ground from under Soma. The Vizier leapt forward, dodging the rock snake's upward dive into atmosphere. Soma continued running while dodging the tackles and tail swipes from Onix, occasionally punching and shooting Gun Flare bullets at the beastly Pokémon. "Geodude, it's your turn!" Geodude burst through the ground next to Soma, swinging its rock hard fist. At this point, Brock got close enough to throw in a storm of his Wind Fist attacks. Soma had to not only deal with the Onix that repetitively plowed towards him, but the tag team attacks from the Brock and Geodude. Even Soma found the battle to be extremely difficult, even for a powerful vizier like himself. The complete opposite of the battle they had a week ago.

"Wind Fist!"

"Geo!"

_WHAM! SMACK!_

Soma reeled back in pain as Geodude's Mega Punch and Brock's Wind Fist struck him hard, causing him to slide back. _'Come on Brock, summon your Mudkip so I can crush you!'_ He glanced behind to see Onix preparing to swing its tail.

_SLAM!_

The vizier barely managed to guard himself before being knocked in the air. He was falling down when Brock took the initiative. "Alright, so far so good guys. Mudkip, use Water Gun to douse Soma!"

'_Perfect._' Soma thought, seeing Mudkip pop out of the ground. The Mud Fish Pokémon conjured a large amount of water in its mouth before shooting it at Soma. "Gun Flare, rapid fire!' Opening the hatches in his large metal gauntlets, Soma shot a large array of fiery bullets. The sound of loud sizzling could be heard as steam started appearing from the colliding attacks. Soma, Brock and his Pokémon were overtaken by the smoke.

"Arg, I can't see!" Brock narrowed his eyes to try and see through the fog of war. Mudkip was next to him, but the other Pokémon were out of sight, as was Soma. "Stay close Mudkip and fire when I give the word."

"Kip!" Mudkip nodded in response.

Brock continued to scout for Soma until he saw a faint red glow ahead of him. It had to be Soma. "Mudkip, use Water Gun!" Mudkip complied and used Water Gun where Brock pointed. There was a roar emanating from where the Water Gun struck. "Oh no, Onix!" The breeder barely noticed a long shadow going towards him. It was Onix's tail. He grabbed Mudkip and jumped over the tail in the nick of time, avoiding heavy damage. He felt something hot behind him, and turned to see a small flame on the ground. Brock would have taken the moment to wonder why a flame was behind him if a large rock hadn't been thrown at him.

_CRASH!_

Brock leapt into a roll to dodge the Rock Throw attack, something he recognized that was done by Geodude. It was then he realized the fact it was him who fell for the trap and not Soma. He had to admit, he gave Soma too little credit. Soma was a hardened warrior, not an idiot. Glancing through the permeating steam, Brock saw small fire embers everywhere, confusing him as to where Soma was hiding. It was clever tactic for Soma to use in order to confuse Brock and his Pokémon. But if the vizier of fire thought Brock was out of ideas, he was wrong.

Unfortunately for Brock, time for recovering and planning had run out.

"BURNING RAVE!" Soma's booming voice yelled.

_WHOOSH!_

A giant ball of flame rushed through the smoke, striking all of those who were inside the confusing mist. The steam was immediately blown away, as were Brock, Mudkip, Geodude and Onix. Everyone fell onto the solid earth hard, writhing from either severe burns or the bone-crushing force. Onix and Geodude were injured, but still had a good amount of stamina thanks to their tough bodies. Brock's training allowed him to withstand the attack, but the same couldn't be said for Mudkip. The water/ground Pokémon was immediately knocked out. Brock staggered to stand up, recalling Mudkip into its Pokéball.

"What, is this all that your advance training has amounted to?" Soma brandished his blade, pointing it at Brock.d

"Of course not. I still have plenty of tricks up my sleeve." Brock fiddled his Pokébelt for his remaining Pokémon. He was going to need all the firepower he could get. "Crobat, Ludicolo!" Brock summoned a purple bat and a duck-faced looking Pokémon with a green body and something shaped like a sombrero on its head.

Soma frowned. _'This battle looks like it's going to get annoying with all those Pokémon there. I wonder…'_ He thumbed his chin, deep I thought. _'I'm starting to think this guy made himself worthy for using my real powers. I think he will be more than enough.'_ Extending his arm, Soma held onto his wrist while conjuring energy. A swirl of red power surged through his arm and into his palm, materializing into a red card depicting a ferocious creature. "Explosive Fighter Ucarn, let's do this!"

Brock was in awe as an 8-foot creature was brought to life from a card. The monster was a huge dragon with a humanoid design. The beast was taller and more muscular than Soma, armed with a small cannon on one arm and a thick double barrel gun on the other arm, his double barreled arm equipped with a razor sharp bayonet. There were plates of armor placed on its chest, legs, claws and arms, leaving its red head and orange underside exposed. Ucarn's long, strong tail slammed on the ground, creating a dent in the earth.

"There better be a good reason for you to summon me, Soma." Ucarn spoke with a booming voice. If Brock wasn't surprised before, he was speechless as soon as he heard the strange beast speak his language.

"Of course there is. We have some worthy opponents." Soma pointed to Brock's Pokémon, who were both nervous and uncharacteristically aggressive. "I've made a deal with someone, so try not to kill them. Just break them." He instructed.

"Soma…! Don't play games with me!" Ucarn growled, huffing angrily, "Why should I let these weaklings live? They should die for trifling with us!"

Soma shook his head. "Don't worry, you'll have plenty of chances later. You know for a fact I wouldn't call you out unless I felt there would be a challenge."

Ucarn was silent for a moment, staring down his opponents. "…Whatever, just don't get in my way."

Soma smirked. "I wouldn't dream of it. I'll just sit back and watch." And he did just that, putting down his sword and sitting on a rock. He was definitely going to enjoy this.

"This looks serious. Whatever this thing is, let's beat him!" Brock cheered, boosting his Pokémon's moral.

"Tch, humans." Ucarn started dashing towards his opponents, raising its bayonet. "YOU WILL LEARN TO FEAR THE KAIJUDO!!" Ucarn stampeded towards the group, his feet smashing into the earth

(Boss – Megaman X4)

"Geodude, Rock Throw! Onix, Tackle! Ludicolo, Water Gun! Crobat, Wing attack!" Brock shouted quickly. Geodude lifted one of the boulders and hurled it at Ucarn while Ludicolo's Water Gun hailed from another direction, aiming at Ucarn.

"Hmph, USELESS!" Ucarn boldly ran into the attacks. The rock thrown at him shattered upon striking Ucarn's fist while the Water Gun did nothing to slow down the beast. Crobat was about to strike with Wing Attack when Ucarn caught it and threw it at a rock. Crobat hit it hard, rendering it dazed. Onix was rushing towards Ucarn with a powerful tackle attack. Ucarn planted his feet as he awaited the beast to get into range. Once Onix was close enough, he aimed his arm cannon at Onix and fired several volleys. The explosions injured and blinded Onix, causing him to dive blindly at Ucarn who jumped on top of the beast's head.

_BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!_

"Onix!" Brock cried, watching the giant snake get shot at repeatedly by the explosive cannons.

Ucarn glanced to see Geodude rushing at him and jumped off Onix, raising his Bayonet. Ucarn went purely offensive against Geodude, slashing with his blade and punching the rock type. Geodude, taken by surprise, went on the defensive to find an opening to the rampaging dragonoid.

"What can I do now…oh yeah, Ludicolo, use Water Pulse!"

"Ludi…colo!" Ludicolo sent ultrasound waves at Ucarn, who didn't suspect the annoying attack.

"Grrr….AAAARRRGGG!" The Water Pulse's ability to confuse the opponent was successful, causing him to shoot wildly all over the place. Everyone on the battlefield took a dive to avoid getting blasted by Ucarn's unrestrained fury, even Soma. Ucarn cracked open an eye to see the attack. "Take this, you worm!" The double barreled gun shot a flurry of bullets, wounding the Ludicolo with each it. The hits were enough to temporarily shut down the Water Pulse. Ucarn used this chance to charge at Ludicolo and pounce, successfully pinning the water-type down. "Let's see how you taste extra well done." Ucarn switched the function of his double barreled arm cannon, releasing searing hot waves of fire. Ludicolo screamed in agony as it was getting burned by the flamethrower. No matter how much water Ludicolo spouted, the flamethrower was too close to negate.

_SMACK!_

Ucarn was knocked off Ludicolo by a Wing Attack from Crobat and a Mega Punch from Geodude. The dragonoid started swinging his blade to fend off the fury of the remaining Pokémon. Brock immediately ran to Ludicolo's aid. "Ludicolo! Are you alright? Speak to me!" Brock mothered worriedly, cradling the Carefree Pokémon in his arms.

"Colo…Ludicolo…" The water/grass type groaned.

Brock shook his head. "There's no need to apologize. Take it easy, you've been a big help." He recalled Ludicolo into his Pokémon and set his sights on Ucarn, who was beginning to push all three Pokémon back.

"Dragon Hazard Fist!" Ucarn punched the ground, causing a fiery explosion to knock Onix, Geodude, and Crobat back. "Back off you weaklings!" Using his machine gun, Ucarn released a flurry of bullets at the Pokémon. Onix and Geodude were too slow to dodge while Crobat's agility helped him avoid getting shot at. The bullets did little to injure Geodude and Onix, but it still kept them at bay.

"Crobat, Supersonic!" Brock commanded. Crobat created a sharp screech, making Ucarn cover his ears.

"Dammit, not another one of those weird attacks…" Ucarn growled, being in pain.

"Onix, use Bind! Geodude, Defense Curl!" If he wanted this to end quickly, Brock would have to act fast. Geodude curled itself into a ball while Onix successfully wrapped around Ucarn, immobilizing the humanoid dragon.

"Damn you! Let. Me. OUT!" Ucarn started thrashing in Onix's Bind, slashing with his bayonet. The increasing overall injuries were causing Onix to wince in agony, but continued to hold strong.

"Alright Geodude, let him have it. ROLLOUT!" At the command, Geodude started spinning rapidly, shooting off at an incredible speed.

"Grrr…." Ucarn would've normally been able to break out of Onix's Bind, but because the Supersonic was still in effect, he was weakened drastically, vulnerable to the Rollout. If only there was a way to disrupt the Supersonic or weaken Onix further, he could probably get a chance to break free. He looked up at the Crobat, who was at an angle above his head. If he could at least startle the bat creature, he could get away. It only took a quick second to remember his surprise attack for this kind of situation. His hands were busy holding his ears from the Supersonic, but there was a weapon he hadn't used yet.

After all, he _is_ a dragonoid.

Ucarn began inhaling deeply, keeping his focus on Crobat. "Flame…SNIPE!" Ucarn shot a super fast fireball, which took the bat by surprised. Crobat screeched as it fell down, injured by the fire attack. Not only did this cancel the Supersonic, but gave Ucarn enough time to break out of Onix's Bind with his super strength. The dragonoid only had a split second to react to Geodude's Rollout attack. He fired his cannon at the ground in front of Geodude. The resulting explosion caused Geodude to bounce in the air, but still towards Ucarn.

_SMACK!_

With a spin, Ucarn struck Geodude with his tail, sending Geodude flying towards another direction, Onix's direction.

_CRASH! _

Onix was hit by the Rollout attack, and with a roar, fell to the ground along with Geodude. Ucarn huffed. "Feh, what weaklings. Pokémon? More like garbage!"

"Grr…" Brock gritted his teeth in anger. How dare that whatever-it-is insult his Pokémon? "Hey guys, are you alright?" All three Pokémon gave respective cries, showing they were still able to fight. "Good, let's show this guy what teamwork is all about. Crobat, hit him with another Supersonic!"

"Not this time!" Ucarn aimed his arm cannon at the bat Pokémon. Pressing a button, a targeting device appeared, locking on. "Suck on this!" He shot off a missile, which aimed directly at Crobat.

"Damn, Crobat, get out of the way!" Brock yelled hastily. Crobat quickly maneuvered past the missile, only the gasp in shock.

The missile released several small missiles, and the smaller missiles turned into even more missiles.

Crobat speedily flew through the explosions, but ultimately couldn't avoid most of them. There were at least over 60 missiles flying about, but over 40 found their target. It was too many missiles and too fast to dodge them all.

_BOOM!_

"Cro…bat…" Crobat dropped from the air, unconscious from the blast.

"Ugh…return Crobat." Brock recalled Crobat back into the Pokéball. "You did good. Thanks Crobat." He looked up at Ucarn, ready to counter attack. "Geodude, Seismic Toss!"

"What!?" Ucarn felt something grab him from behind. It was Geodude. He suddenly felt his body being lifted into the air, flipping rapidly in the process.

_CRASH!_

"ACK!" Blood escaped Ucarn's lips as he was slammed into the ground upside down. "Damn you garbage…!"

_SLASH!_

Ucarn cut Geodude with his Bayonet, causing the rock/ground type to fall back. Before Geodude could get up, Ucarn pressed his feet on each of Geodude's arms, immobilizing the Pokémon. He aimed his arm cannon at Geodude's face at close range. "Die, die, DIE!"

_BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!_

Ucarn continuously shot several arm cannons at Geodude's face, creating severe cracks and injuries. He was bent on killing Geodude.

Brock only had one chance to save Geodude, but he never liked using that attack. "Geodude…EXPLOSION!" Geodude complied while getting shot at the face, shining brightly. Ucarn only had a chance to gasp before—

_KABOOM!_

"ARG!" Ucarn was blasted into the air, flipped several times, and then landed roughly on the ground. He lay on the ground as a smoking heap, his body charred from the blast.

"I'm sorry Geodude. Maybe if I was a better trainer, that would've have happened…" Brock murmured grimly, recalling the fainted Geodude. The only Pokémon left was Onix. Though it was a sacrifice, at least Ucarn was—

"You…damned…vermin…!" Ucarn growled darkly, getting up.

"What…!? There's no way any creature can be that strong...!" Brock gasped, sweating fearfully.

Soma grinned. "Don't underestimate Ucarn so easily, Brock. He happens to be one of my strongest Kaijudo partners. I wouldn't have brought him out if I felt he would lose so quickly."

"Damn straight!" Ucarn flexed his muscles, showing his incredible vitality. "Now all that's left is that stone snake. Here I go!" He started running towards Onix.

Brock gritted as he watched his last Pokémon. Though Onix was his strongest Pokémon, even the Rock Snake Pokémon could only take so many more attacks. Onix was in pain. "Onix, use Bide!" Onix coiled into a ball, initiating the attack.

"Hmph, defense won't work!" Ucarn started firing his cannons again, pummeling the stationary Rock Snake Pokémon. The repetition of attacks continued for over a minute with no end of it in sight. "Why won't you do something? I'm getting bored!" Ucarn started using his machine gun and flamethrower to attack Onix.

Brock noted Onix's vitality dropping. If he waited any longer, Onix would faint. "Onix, DOUBLE-EDGE!"

"ROOAARR!" Onix shot off like a rocket, ramming into Ucarn's chest. The explosive fighter was knocked through a dozen boulders before sliding into a halt. Onix fainted soon after, its body too weak to go any further.

"That was perfect! Thanks Onix. Return." Brock recalled. There was too much dust from the crash to see if Ucarn was still conscious. Once the smoke cleared, the answer was clear.

Ucarn was still conscious.

"What. The. Hell!" Brock's jaw dropped. After receiving all of those attacks, Ucarn was still standing. How was that possible?

"Hmph, that was utter crap." Ucarn emerged from the wreckage, but not unscathed. His entire body was beaten up and charred from all of the damage done to him, and one of his eyes was shut from the blood running down his head. He used up most of his ammunition, especially for his cannons. "I'll admit that I've used up a lot of strength to take all four of them down, but in the end, they were all garbage. Each and every one of them. Trash like that are better off dead."

"SHUT UP!" Brock exploded, reengaging his spirit-sync. "I will not let you insult my friends like that! They've helped me since the beginning, and even now, they still are! I WILL DEFEAT YOU FOR THEIR SAKE!"

Ucarn's tail swished as he laughed. "You, a mere human, defeat me? If four pieces of trash couldn't defeat me, what makes you think you can do any—"

_POW!_

"Augh…!" Ucarn gasped, wide eyed, as Brock's fist was planted into his stomach.

Brock smirked evilly as he locked eyes with the surprised dragonoid. "…It's raping time, you dragon wanna-be!"

_WHAM!_

"Agh!" Ucarn was sent sliding back by Brock's kick to the stomach. He used his clawed feet to stop from sliding. "That's it, eat lead you bastard!" When he lifted his arms to aim the weapons, he made a sharp gasp. "W-WHAT!? WHAT HAPPENED TO MY WEAPONS!?"

"Looking for these?" Brock flashed the arm weapons, which were now on his arm. "I noticed you had a lot of fun using these, so I decided to try them out for myself. Nice fit!"

"That…that's impossible! I've set a lock on those so that wouldn't happen! How could you have broken it so quickly?"

"That's the thing, who said I broke it? One of my friends, Crobat to be precise, happened to break the locks with one of his Wing Attacks. After all, we can't have you blasting everything you want, now can we?"

Ucarn started sweating, but still kept his cool. "Clever, but even then, there's no way you would know how to operate that."

"Is that so?" Brock aimed the arm cannon at Ucarn and fired off a shot.

_BOOM!_

The cannon just barely missed Ucarn purposely, rendering Ucarn flabbergasted. "Wha…but when did you…how did…?"

"What, did you think all I was doing was making orders all day? I have eyes you know."

"Lies!" Ucarn shouted, pointing at Brock. "Those lines on your face can't possibly be eyes!"

"I couldn't help but wonder the same thing myself." Soma added.

"Hmph, believe what you would like, but it's still the same result." Brock got into a running stance. "I am going to WRECK YOU!"

_SLAM!_

Brock charged forward with great speed, punching Ucarn in the stomach several times until he was knocked in midair. "WIND FIST!"

_POW!_

"AAAAH!" Ucarn was sent spinning high into the air, unable to act. Also, with that attack, Ucarn's weakened armor broke and shattered, leaving his body much more vulnerable.

However, Brock wasn't even close to finished. "Here's a taste of your own medicine!" He aimed the cannon and machine gun at Ucarn, unleashing a huge payload of weaponry at the beast. As Ucarn began to fall, the blast continued to do increasingly high damage at incredible velocity.

"Time to finish this, Wind…" Brock clasped his hands together tightly, pulling them back. A powerful swirl of wind was formed. "HAMMER!"

_**POW!**_

"AAAAH!" Ucarn was sent flying into the ground, creating a tremendous rupture into the earth. Once the dust settled, Ucarn was seen lying unconscious on the ground.

Ucarn was defeated.

"What on…?" Soma was shocked, watching as his mighty Ucarn began dematerializing. His champion was defeated by Brock, when it couldn't be beaten by the four Pokémon—no, he corrected himself. The four Pokémon did help, a lot. Just because they fell to Ucarn's might didn't mean what they did was meaningless.

Brock proved that very well.

"Bravo, Brock. Bravo." Soma clapped. "You've accomplished what no human has before. I applaud you for that. I'll admit myself that someone needed to put that Ucarn in his place. However…" Soma stood up from the rock he was sitting on, wielding his sword, "Now it's our turn to do battle. As a reward for proving your prowess, I shall give you my all. Prepare yourself for defeat!" With a loud battle cry, Soma started releasing the more powerful abilities and strengths that made him a powerhouse vizier, a wave of force being expelled from his body.

Brock covered his face from the dust that was sent his way. "Man, I think Dragonball Z is going to sue us for this…"

"Ready or not…HERE I COME!" Soma jumped high in the air, lunging at Brock with his sword. Brock dodged to the side, but still got hurt by the force of the blast that was caused by Soma's sword crashing into the earth. It was clear to tell it would be best to avoid getting struck by that sword at all cost. Soma was suddenly a lot quicker and more powerful than from previous bouts and battles, his battle with Zao Kaiza being the exception.

Brock crouched behind a rock, trying to devise a plan. _'Come on Brock, this is your big chance. Don't blow it by screwing up. Remember what you've been taught so far.'_

Flashback – One week ago

_Ritchie sat in front of Brock, the first of Team Nova to train him. "Okay Brock, I'm gonna teach you some basic techniques that will help you get out of tight situations. Um…let's see…where do I start…?" The young teen tapped on his chin thoughtfully until he thought of an idea. "Ah, okay. I got it. I'll teach you defense, just in case you fight opponents who may be considerably tougher than you."_

_Brock grew excited. "Defense? You mean like some really cool martial art technique? Or maybe some super awesome move to get the battle to my advantage?"_

"_Nope! The trick is to simply play a game with your opponent."_

_Thus Brock went from excitement to confusion. "Play a game?"_

"_Sure! Everybody loves games! But the one you'll play is the perfect game to suit the situation. The name of the game is 'hide-and-seek'." Ritchie answered cheerfully._

"_Uh…wha?" Clearly, Brock didn't get it._

"_I figured I might get such a response. Anyway, it's an easy idea. If you're in an area that has lots of hiding places, USE THEM!" Ritchie emphasized greatly, "But you should never just hide. Otherwise, it won't be hide-and-seek."_

"_But isn't the game where you hide and the enemy seeks you?"_

"_Not quite. You're playing both the hider and the seeker. You see, what you're seeking is not the enemy, but advantage. This is the part where you gotta use your head. Once you spot something, wait until you're absolutely sure about your timing. Never waste any precious seconds you might have, because remember: The enemy will eventually have to find you."_

_Brock nodded, confirming he understood. "Right! So when in doubt, play hide-and-seek."_

"_And that's what it's all about!" Ritchie gave Brock the thumbs up._

End of Flashback

"Alright, let's see what I can find…" Brock peered over the side of the rock, barely catching a glimpse of Soma, who was breaking rocks in an attempt to find Brock. The breeder took the moment to find anything that might be of use. The sword was a huge weapon. About a tall as Soma, who himself was almost 7 feet tall. With its weight and Brock's calculation of Soma's strength, the sword's speed was pretty fast, but avoidable. The next was the gauntlets, not overly huge, but big enough to let anyone know they pack a punch. Also, those hatches that appear from the side allowed long range attacks.

Brock began glancing over his current weapons. On the right side was the cannon arm. Since the cannon was used a lot, it had very little amount of ammo left, 2 shots to be exact. The machine gun had 5 bullets remaining, and the flamethrower had one fuel cell left, about 2 seconds of flame time. There was an interesting option that Ucarn never revealed.

This battle was about to get very fun.

Brock jumped over the rock and started dashing as fast as he could towards Soma, who was facing the opposite direction. "Hey ugly, here I come!"

"Gotcha!" Soma yelled, swinging his sword.

'_I only got one shot for this. Make it count.'_ A member flashed through his head as the sword was quickly heading his direction.

Flashback

_The following day after Ritchie, it was Brendan's turn to help Brock. The white haired teen paced back and forth, deep in thought. "Hmm…there are many topics to consider, but I think I know a good topic for someone like you." He stopped and turned to face an attentive Brock, "What is the most powerful tool you can have?"_

"_Um…let's see…Pokémon?"_

"_Nope."_

"_Your fist?"_

"_Try again."_

"_Your environment?"_

"_Nada."_

"_Your mind?"_

"_Almost, but not quite it."_

_Brock sighed. "I give up. What's the answer?"_

"_The most powerful tool you can have is…your opponent!"_

"_Huh?" Brock was stumped at his answer. "How does that work?"_

"_Just think about it. If you know how to wield your opponent, you can't lose. If you can control your opponent's movements and actions, it really doesn't matter how much stronger than you they are. In the end, they'll be nothing more than puppets to your will. Let's see…a good example might be if you fight someone with a giant axe. Man, I've had more than my share of those…" Brock, no matter how surprised he was to hear that, decided not to question him about that last statement. "Anyway, someone with a giant axe may be very strong, but they have a driving force that's the key to their power. It's momentum. Whatever moves starts off slow, then goes up to their maximum speed, and then slows down, right? Well, if you know how to control that movement, the momentum will be in your favor, that way you control your opponent's moves. It's all simple calculations once it comes down to it. Simple, right?"_

"_Yeah, I get it. Control your opponent to gain the upper hand."_

"_Correct! It won't always be easy, but if you're successful, you'll gain the upper hand in no time!"_

End of flashback

Brock continued dashing until the blade was close to cleaving him. Right then, Brock kicked off the ground and just barely flipped over the slash. Once the sword passed, he aimed the cannon arm at Soma before landing on his back, or rather, Soma's sword handle.

_BOOM!_

"Agh!" The blast hit Soma's hand, forcing him to release his sword. Due to the strong momentum, the sword was sent flying off, too far for Soma to catch at the moment. "Damn you…!" The fire vizier raised his fist, prepared to crush Brock.

Brock only had a split second to react. He aimed the machine gun at the fist and fired off all five rounds. The rounds hit the side of the fist, curving the trajectory so it would barely miss. At the next instant, Brock used the flamethrower and shot at Soma's face, forcing him the block the blinding flames with his free hand. While Soma was blinded, the breeder took the chance and quickly glanced at the gauntlet, confirming his suspicions. Pressing a button, the gauntlet disengaged and released. Soma realized this and quickly pulled back his hand. Unfortunately for him, this allowed Brock to slip off the metal glove. Brock rolled out of the way before Soma could step on the breeder.

"Dammit! Give back my Mana Bracer!" Soma growled.

"Oh, you mean this? Nah, I think I'll keep it. I might give this back once I beat you." Brock discarded the now empty double barrel arm weapon and equipped the Mana Bracer. His face twisted with disgust. "Ewww…it's all sweaty and hot."

"Well excuse me for being in the heat of battle!" The angered vizier scowled.

"Now let's see…how do I use this thing?" Brock scanned the stolen item, checking it for functions.

"Gun Flare!" The hatches opened on Soma's single Mana Bracer, shooting rapid fire balls.

"Whoa!" Brock blocked a few of them with his own Mana Bracer while running around. _'I need to get in close so he can't shoot those fireballs at me.'_ He suddenly stopped and started to get into his battle stance. His fists were raised up to his chest and his feet slightly hopping left and right. _'Alright, let's put Gary's battle style to the test…!'_

Flashback

_The day after Rui's ranged-combat training, which was the third day, Gary decided to give Brock some close-combat training. The two battlers danced around each other, occasionally gauging and tossing attacks at their opponent. "Today's training is battle styles." Gary began, tossing a punch at Brock, "There are literally thousands of fighting styles, and even more ways of battling. However, they mainly fall under 3 categories: Aggressive, control, and technique. Aggro, short for aggressive, is the easiest of the three to use, but requires great effort to succeed. Control is a bit more time consuming and requires great skill and mentality, but can prove most effective when used properly. Technique is special and depends on user preference. Technique relies on abilities or weapons that allow advantage, often long-range."_

"_Sounds complicated." Brock commented, blocking a punch and tossing some of his own._

"_Possibly. In a way, you can think of it as a game of rock-paper-scissors. Aggro beats tech, tech beats control, and control beats aggro. This isn't set in stone, so don't get carried away with the idea. A fundamental rule to keep in mind is to not stay with the same style all the time. Mix it up, keep your opponent guessing. That way, you can confuse your opponent."_

"_Alright, so keep my opponents guessing by switching from aggro, to control, to technique. Got it."_

End of flashback

Brock darted forward while bouncing left and right to dodge the fireballs. He swung the fist equipped with the Mana Bracer.

_CLASH!_

Soma deflected the punch by using his Mana Bracer. He spun into a kick, which Brock blocked. Brock countered with a bayonet slash, but Soma jumped back to dodge and dashed forward, with his gauntlet raised.

_CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!_

The two continued exchanging blows and parries at incredible rates. Though Brock had an incredible speed boost due to Takeshi's wind element, Soma's overall strength and ability was higher than Brock's, making it a difficult battle for both of them. This continued until Soma found an opening in one of Brock's punches. He leaned to the side to evade the punch and grabbed Brock's arm with his tail. Brock cursed lowly when he suddenly remembered the tail.

_POW!_

"Ack!" Brock was sent flying high and far by a powerful straight punch by Soma. Brock cracked open an eye to see Soma aiming his Mana Bracer at Brock, prepping a Gun Flare barrage.

"_Brock, listen to me! I have a plan!"_ Takeshi called urgently.

"Well I'll love to hear it before I'm barbecued."

"_Alright, let's see…I can feel something touching the sides of your wrist. It's small, but it gives me an idea. Try concentrating some of my mana into it. Aim at Soma while doing so."_

"Alright." Brock complied and aimed the Mana Bracer at Soma, sending wind mana to the notches touching his wrist. _'This better work, or I'm cooked!'_

"Gun Flare!" Soma shot a storm of fireballs at Brock. "Heh, time to go down, Brock!"

"I don't think so!" The hatches on Brock's Mana Bracer released, a hint of green energy flowing inside each barrel. "Wind Shot!" Brock held onto his arm as the Mana Bracer began shooting was would seem like invisible bullets to the naked eye. However, there was a concentration of air in each shot, vaguely seen as a hazy distortion in the air.

"What!? No way!" Soma exclaimed, watching his bullets being canceled out by the wind bullets.

"Whoa! This is AWESOME!" Brock yelled excitedly, shooting Wind Shots at Soma.

"_Hey, hey! Be careful with that mana! You'll suck us try within seconds if you get too trigger happy!" _Takeshi scolded.

"I know, I know!" Brock landed and strafed quickly, shooting Soma with Wind Shot.

Soma jumped behind a rock, occasionally peeking over the boulder and shooting at Brock to keep him busy. "Damn it all. I never dreamed that boy would grow so powerful in such a short time. Let's see…what should I do now…?" Something caught Soma's eye, and upon observation he discovered the whereabouts of his sword. It was embedded into the earth, a few meters away. With a quick sprint, he could make it in two minutes. _'Hmm…I'll have to be careful. I can never figure out what that kid will do next.'_ With that thought in mind, he ran out of his hiding place while shooting a flurry of Gun Flares. Brock flatten himself to a rock to avoid getting gunned down. He couldn't stand up too much since Soma was still shooting at him, but he just barely noticed what Soma was trying to do.

He wasn't going to let Soma have it that easily.

Right then, Brock had a plan to catch him off guard, using _that_ technique.

"Wind Drill!" Brock slammed his Wind Drill into the ground, using it to burrow under quickly.

"Alright, I'm almost there." Soma started running faster to make it before Brock could do anything. His hand had just landed on the sword when Brock suddenly burst from the ground. Soma glanced behind to see Brock preparing a move. _'W…what is he going to do!?'_ He wondered, seeing him pulling his hands back.

"Here's my new move! Secret technique!" With his hands pressed together and two forefingers pointing, he thrust forward. "A THOUSAND YEARS OF PAIN!"

_POKE!_

"GYAAAAH!" Soma cried in agony, shooting forward in the air. While his hand was still clutching onto his sword, his free hand was placed over the spot where the sun doesn't shine. The poor victim of the embarrassing attack fell on the ground, writhing in misery. "What…WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!?" He bellowed, tears of pain flowing down his face. Never in his life had he felt more abused and shamed.

"That's a secret technique I learned recently! Take that! Hahaha!" Brock laughed victoriously.

Violet dropped the microphone, along with her jaw. She couldn't believe what she just saw, too speechless to even comment. _'Wow…I know Brock had bad luck with girls, but…to do that to Soma and call it a victory…'_

Violet wasn't the only one shocked. The audience was silenced, feeling a combination of awe, shock and disgust, none more so than Ash and Misty.

"Um…Ash?" Misty asked slowly, making sure it wasn't just an illusion. "…Did Brock just shove his fingers up Soma's—"

"Yes Misty, he did. He certainly did."

Satoshi sweat-dropped fiercely. _"…I think it's safe to say Brock needs to get laid…"_

Kasumi, who would've normally chided Satoshi for speaking such a way, could only nod in agreement.

Back on the battlefield, Soma recovered from the attack, a hole marking his permanent mental scarring. Safe to say, he wasn't amused by this. "You're not getting out of here in one piece…" Soma moved so fast, Brock couldn't respond in time.

"Holy—"

_SMACK!_

Brock's words were cut off by a powerful back hand, sending him hurdling over a boulder. He gripped his face, moaning in agony. He almost thought his head was going to come off with that hit. Remembering his dire situation, he quickly stood on his feet, only to see a giant blade being swung towards him.

_SLASH!_

The rock that served as a small shield shattered to pieces. Luckily, Brock's quick thinking allowed him to live to see another day…possibly. Soma's dark glare spotted a whole where Brock used to be. "Where is that bastard…!?" He snarled.

_WHAM!_

"GAH!" Soma received a devastating uppercut, leaving him temporarily dazed. _'How…how did he…and so quickly…!'_

'_This is my chance!'_ Brock jumped forward at Soma, right on top of him. "Wind…!" Brock clasped his hands together, raising the combined swirling ball of wind mana from both of his hands. The Mana Bracer further increased the power and weight of the attack. "HAMMER!"

_CRASH!_

The attack connected with Soma's head, and that hit the ground roughly. Brock stumbled back, panting hard. That attack not only took a lot of mana to produce, but required a lot of strength to do enough damage. He could only pray that Soma would get up. _'Come on…come on…stay down, Soma…!'_

And thus Violet started the countdown.

"1…2…"

Soma's mind was in a half conscious state, barely able to stay awake. _'Is…is this it…? Is this all that my lifetime of battles and training amounted to…? Defeated by some…kid…?'_

"3…4…5…"

Soma's hand gripped tightly, snatching up the dirt on the ground. _'Damn…I can't…I won't…not until I…until I…' _

"6…7…8—" Violet stopped as she stared awestruck.

Soma stood up.

Brock felt as though time was frozen the minute Soma's cold eyes stared into his. Even without his training, the breeder could easily tell what that feeling was.

Killing intent.

"I cannot lose…not until I…defeat _that person_! TYRANT OVERDRIVE!!" Soma screamed as he started conjuring more energy than he ever had before, fully bent on slaughtering the rock/water gym leader.

"Eep..!" Brock yelped, stepping back.

This wasn't looking too good for him.

"Hyper…" Soma pulled the sword to his side, the blade burning with power. "Flame Slash!"

_WHOOSH!_

A wave of fire rushed from Soma's blade, burning most of the landscape. Luckily, Brock burrowed underground before he was burned by the attack. "Not this time!" Soma twirled the blade until it was held upside down. "Magma Burst!" Thrusting it into the ground, most of the earth around him exploded with fiery fury, a charred Brock being blown into the air. Brock attempted to recover, but saw Soma instantly jumping right over him.

_SLAM!_

Brock received a strong punch in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. His body was tossed into the ground, crashing on the ground. "Hyper Gun Flare!" With a threatening roar, Soma shot powerful fireballs at Brock, not giving him a chance to recover. The barrage stopped a minute later, smoke emanating where Brock lay. Brock's body was in terrible shape, being pounded and burned by the attacks. Soma walked over to Brock and lifted him by the shirt. "Where's that confidence you had a minute ago? Huh!?"

_POW!_

With a punch, Brock was knocked against a rock, which was the only thing helping him stand. Soma rushed him and slammed the hilt of his sword into Brock's stomach. Brock released a gasp of pain, blood shooting from his mouth. Soma couldn't feel any more satisfied with his revenge. "Tch, how pathetic. Look at you, barely clinging to consciousness. I'll commend you for making me go this far, but it led to your own undoing. Face it kid, you never stood a chance. Your weak friends will be no different once I get my hands on them." Soma lifted him up, almost wanting to laugh at Brock, who was rendered helpless. "Any last words before I completely dominate you?"

Brock paused for a moment before answering, a small smile on his face. "Yeah…just a few." He raised his Mana Bracer at Soma's face. "Never take humans for granted."

_BOOM!_

"Arg!" Soma stumbled back and dropped Brock, growling from the pain.

Brock's legs trembled with weakness, his arms barely able to keep a fighting stance. It was clear to tell Brock was on his last leg of energy, struggling just to stay on top. His perseverance was astounding; something Ash and Misty had to give him credit for. They truly underestimated Brock's potential.

Soma glared daggers at the green haired menace. "I don't understand. Why do you keep trying? You could easily just take the fall and let one of your friends take over. What is it you're trying to accomplish?" Brock's silence only served to anger Soma. "Well? What is it? Revenge? Fame? Money? Glory? What is so important to you that you're risking your life?"

"…What are you talking about? It's nothing like that. This last week has been filled with harsh treatment and brutal exercises. I've been beaten up so many times I'd lost count. Through it all, I've learned many things, not all of them about combat and fighting. When I first entered the tournament, I was all about beating you and making sure my friends were out of danger. But…watching them fight and progress through each battle, I now know that there's no chance I will always be able to keep them from danger. It doesn't look like the trouble we keep running into will stop or slow down anytime soon either. I honestly thought I could protect them."

Brock tightened his fist, his hands shaking. "But now, I know that's not the case…"

"Hm?" Soma could feel something coming from Brock. He could only wonder what that energy was…

"I finally understand what it is I need to do, an even better reason for entering this tournament to fight only the strongest. It's not to protect, but to prove something. I'm here for one thing and one thing only." Brock looked up at Soma, his face more serious than it had ever been before. "I'm here to prove that I can hang with the best and fight along Ash and Misty! Look out Soma, because within the next minute…" Soma looked around as he felt strong gales of wind whip around the arena, all of which flowed around Brock's body. Without warning, an explosion of Wind rushed out of Brock's body, enough to push even the Tyrant Mode Soma back. "ONE OF US IS GOING TO LOSE! WIND OVERDRIVE!!"

(Beautiful, green, wild beast – Naruto)

"_I'm going to give you all of my power. You got exactly one minute. Even then, I can't promise your body will be able to handle it. Let's use that time to take down Soma!"_ Takeshi strained his spiritual mana as he started pumping Brock with his remaining energy.

'_I won't let you down!'_ Brock disappeared from sight, surprising Soma.

"Did he just copy my Tyrant Overdrive?" Soma barely noticed Brock appearing behind him, every limb on his body brimming with wind mana.

_WHAM!_

"Waaugh!" Soma was sent flying forward from Brock's super fast punch. The vizier recovered and mid air and tried to swing his sword, but Brock was suddenly above Soma. "Damn…so fast…!"

"RAAAAH!" Brock's fist flew at Soma at unbelievable speeds. Soma was getting beaten down by the punches, unable to strike back without getting totally pummeled. Before Soma could land, Brock would use his speed to practically teleport under him and hit the vizier up and all over the place. 10 seconds into the beating, Soma had had it.

_WHOOSH!_

Soma unleashed a devastating wave of fire energy, pushing Brock away. He gripped his sword with both hands, charging forward.

_CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!_

Soma's sword and Brock's bayonet and Mana Bracer clashed in mid air at a dizzying pace, shockwaves being emitted from the collided force. 20 seconds passed in what felt like minutes, the two desperate to gain advantage. With a battle cry, Brock dove forward with his Mana Bracer raised, lunging for a powerful blow. Unfortunately for him, he let his defense down for an instant with that maneuver. "You're mine!" Soma cried, swinging his sword at Brock.

_SLASH!_

The blade cut into Brock's side, causing the breeder intense pain. Soma half expected the blade to cut through, but was amazed to see Brock's other hand gripping the burning blade. His hand began bleeding heavily from the cut the sword was causing as he continued diving for the attack. "WIND FIST!"

_SMACK! CRASH!_

Soma crashed into a boulder, writhing in pain. He quickly glanced upward to see Brock preparing for a powerful attack. Takeshi grew worried, but not about Soma. _"Brock, we can only hold out for 10 more seconds! We won't be able to hit him in time with our attack!"_

_10…9…8…_

'_Oh yeah? Watch me!'_ Brock aimed the bayonet at Soma and pressed a button on top of the blade. The blade suddenly shot forward, a chain attached to it.

_7…_

_CHING!_

The bayonet stabbed into the boulder Soma landed on, forcing the vizier to be stationary. "Damn! I'm trapped."

_6…_

"Oooooh….!" Brock started powering up his fist with an extreme amount of wind mana, a small vortex forming around his Mana Bracer. _'Well, I doubt it's as good as Naruto's Rasengan, nor as powerful, but I'll give it my all! I'll use what Naruto taught me to win this match!'_

_5…_

Time seemed to slow down as the bayonet started retracting, pulling Brock at Soma, yelling at the top of his lungs. His fist was suddenly enveloped into a powerful, condensed ball of green energy swirling around his fist. This caused a massive vacuum of wind around Brock's vicinity.

_4…_

Soma saw what would be his imminent defeat should that attack connect. Being his sword would be too slow, he realized his only chance of escaping, and it was to use _that_.

_3…_

'_It's all or nothing!'_ Soma pulled his fist back, putting all of his might into a single blow.

_2…_

Soma prepared to use his ultimate attack, as did Brock. "Hyper…Burning…!"

"Tempest…!"

_1…_

"RAAAAVE!" The two yelled as their attacks collided.

_0…!_

_**CRASH!**_

The resulting attacks ripped the battlefield apart with a powerful blast. The flash from the attacks blinded the audience from seeing what happened, but two entities could be seen shooting off in opposite directions, slamming into the ground with great force. There was a blinding cloud of dust where Brock and Soma fell, along with a huge crater in between.

Soma was the first to be seen on his feet, his body ravaged and battered. Cracked glasses revealed Soma's stunned eyes. He depleted all of his remaining mana for that final attack. Had he not done that, Brock would've knocked him out for sure. Exhausted beyond meaning, Soma used his sword as a crutch. He couldn't even move. "He…he has to be down for the count…! No one ever survived that attack and stayed…" His sentence slowed to a stop once he saw through the dust. His eyes widened with disbelief and terror.

Brock was standing.

'_WHAT!? THIS CAN'T BE! IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!'_ Soma thought wildly. He knew for a fact Brock took a direct hit. It was beyond his knowledge of anyone with enough endurance to not get crushed by his attack. His eyes locked onto Brock as the spirit host slowly walked towards him, emerging out of the crater. "D…damn it…!" Soma tried to move, but was frozen stiff. Whether it was the lack of stamina or being in shock, he didn't know. What he did know was how much danger he was in.

Brock's movements were slow and steady; his arms limp at his sides. His body was drenched in bruises and blood. It was miraculous how he could still be conscious. The young adult walked until he was inches in front of Soma. There was a period of silence as they stared into each other's eyes. Brock's expression was calm, yet unreadable. He pulled back his fist, preparing for the finishing blow. Soma closed his eyes, gritting his teeth angrily. He truly tried his best, but still couldn't accept the fact that not only did he lose to Brock, but also to Takeshi, his battling rival. Should he be defeated, he could never face _that person_ ever again, shamed with this defeat.

But then, Soma noticed it took far too long for Brock to do a simple punch. Opening his eyes, he witnessed a surprising sight. Brock was still in the same position, not moving a muscle. "…What…?" Soma narrowed his eyes, only to suddenly widen them in surprise.

Brock fainted.

* * *

Talk about EPIC! I am SO, SO, SO sorry for taking so long with this. Hopefully this can keep you satisfied until the next chapter arrives. I'm hoping they will be done much sooner than this one was. Hopefully, you all will be merciful enough to leave a review on your thoughts on this chapter, and maybe even about Brock. Who knew he could prove so powerful in combat? One can only imagine how powerful the next few battles will be. Stay tuned for more tournament action! 


	16. Clash of Light and Darkness! Part 1

_**Clash of light and darkness – Part 1**_

Cerulean City - Battlefield

Soma looked down at the unconscious Brock with a shocked glance. It wasn't a first time he had fought difficult battles before, but never before had someone come so close to defeat him.

Correction, no _human_ had ever come that close.

He almost considered his bout with Zao, but after seeing that man's eye and strength, any thought he was human was quickly washed away. Many questions formed within the vizier's mind, almost too many to count. He barely registered Violet declaring the winner of the match, which was undoubtedly Soma. "Soma!" The fire vizier turned slowly to see Zansei running towards him and Violet. The young boy noticed the strange combination of confusion and reflection on Soma's face. "Are you alright?"

Soma didn't answer right away. He knelt in front of Brock's unconscious body and slipped off the Mana Bracer. "…I need rest."

"I'll help you along." Zansei acted as a crutch for the exhausted tiger-humanoid. As they were crossing by, Ash and Misty rushed passed them to check up on Brock's condition.

"Is he going to be okay, sir?" Ash asked the medic, feeling frantic for his fallen friend.

The doctor had a grim expression while walking with the rest of the medical staff. "His body had undergone some extreme stress, and there's a chance of multiple fractures and broken bones. Also, he has heavy injuries on his torso from the blade wound. However, he should be able to recover after some treatment."

"Thank goodness." Misty sighed in relief. It would've been terrible if those wounds proved to be fatal. Hopefully, she could get a chance later to heal some of Brock's wounds for quicker recovery.

Speaking of which, there was another reason for Misty to be out here.

"Alright you two, we're about to get started so take your positions." Violet ordered.

Ash took a deep breath, already feeling butterflies in his stomach. Of all the people he had to fight, it had to be Misty. Also, Satoshi wasn't helping the situation at all. _"Alright Ash, this is the moment we've been waiting for! Don't hold back! Kick her ass!" _The spirit cheered, his eyes flaming with determination.

'_For the love of…don't you have ANY sense of companionship!?'_

Satoshi shrugged visibly. _"…I put up with you, don't I?"_

Ash growled mentally, preparing a snappy comment, but decided in the long run to ignore Satoshi's 'cheering'. _'But he does have a point. After this, one of us will fight Soma. I can't risk Misty fighting Soma. I'll have to make sure she loses this match.'_

Little did Ash know, Misty had the same thought in mind.

Violet waited until Ash and Misty were standing a fair distance away from each other before starting the match. "Alright ladies and gentlemen! I hope you're ready for an exciting match between our last semi-finalist who will battle it out to get a chance to face the fiery fighter Soma! Here are our next two fighters, whom we all know and love, ASH KETCHUM and MISTY WATERFLOWER! How will these two lovebirds fair against each other in this grueling match? Will their love hold strong after? We shall find out today!"

"HEY!" Both Ash and Misty yelled, flushing with embarrassment.

"Let's begin the semi-final round of Ash versus Misty! Fighters ready….? FIGHT!"

(_Seeking Victory – Tales of Legendia_)

"Stay back for this one, Pikachu. I might need to save you for later. You're my back up plan."

"Pika…!" Pikachu stepped away, still not liking the idea of those two fighting each other. The rodent never did before and still hated the idea now.

Ash crossed his arms defensively, sizing up his opponent. So far, he knew of Misty's speed, defensive and long range abilities. From the battles he had seen her participate, he knew how difficult and long this battle would be. Cautious, Ash didn't attack first, but waited for Misty to make the first move.

With Misty, she spent most of last night covering the battle tactics she would use with Kasumi. Ash had always been a versatile fighter, quick on his feet and surprisingly balanced. The boy was unpredictable, not to mention fairly tough and flexible. Normally, she would send out her Pokémon to attack, but there was an issue. Most of the Pokémon refused to fight Ash, knowing how important he was to Misty. The only Pokémon who was willing to fight along side with Misty was Psyduck, but that dumb bird wouldn't know left from right anyhow. This left Misty with only one realistic option. "Spirit-sync!" Misty transformed into her spirit-sync form, gaining the light-based abilities of Kasumi. "Laser Strike!"

"Uh oh!" Ash leapt and tumbled haphazardly along the battle field, dodging the wave of laser beams being thrown at him. He took cover behind a rock, using it as a shield. "Spirit-sync!" Ash clapped his hands together, fusing his spirit with Satoshi's. "Shadow Shift!" Using his newfound and mastered ability, he leaned towards the rock, sinking into the boulder's shadow until he disappeared. Just then, Misty slid to a halt at that particular spot, ready to give Ash a good thrashing.

"Huh? Where did he go?" Misty blinked, looking left and right for Ash.

"Gotcha!" Ash yelled victoriously, grabbing Misty's shoulder with his hand.

'_How did he get behind me?'_ With Ash's hand held fast on her shoulder, Misty couldn't move to dodge his punch. Ash had his hand fist to punch Misty. The two stood locked in position for several intense seconds.

"_Ash, what's wrong?"_ Satoshi asked, alarmed.

Ash's serious expression held for a moment before it fell, comical tears falling down his face. _'I just can't bring myself to do it! I can't hit a girl!'_ He cried mentally.

"_You're such a wimp!"_ Satoshi bellowed, furious.

Misty used this chance to slip from Ash's grip and slam her knee into his stomach. The boy stumbled back and gasped, getting the wind knocked out of him. Ash managed to catch Misty running at him in the nick of time, stepping back while dodging and blocking her super quick attacks. Though her attacks weren't necessarily powerful, they were extremely fast, making it hard to block most of them. Punch after punch, kick after kick, Ash was being pushed back by the battling redhead.

'_I have to win this battle!'_ Misty continued her swarm of punches and kicks, growing annoyed with Ash's defense. _'I owe it to Ash for losing so horribly before. I will not be a weak little girl who hides behind her hero, but one that fights for his sake!'_ Misty jumped back, throwing another wave of lasers at Ash.

Some of the beams grazed Ash's body, leaving painful burn marks. Ash winced and held the arm that got wounded, rubbing it tenderly. _'Yeowch! Those lasers hurt like hell!'_ He cursed mentally.

"_No kidding. They are LASERS after all. What did you think she was shooting, a flashlight?"_ Satoshi shot sardonically.

"You're not helping you know!" Ash growled under his breath. He really needed a way to win the battle without causing physical harm to Misty.

Easier said than done.

Misty's eyebrows furrowed as she started running after Ash. Why wasn't he attacking her? After her inspiring conversation with Ash, she expected him to give her his all. Was this a strategy, or did he chicken out in the end? No, she wouldn't allow herself to think of Ash like that. Either way, she wasn't going to hold back. "Laser Strike!"

Ash cursed under his breath as some of the lasers were about to make a direct hit and shield himself. More of the beams grazed his arms and torso, scolding him. However, Ash noticed something as the beams struck his fingerless gloves.

It was reflected back at Misty.

"Ah!" Misty yelped in pain as some of the beams hit Misty on her arm and leg, searing them

Ash looked down on his gloves, remembering the special additions placed on them. "Oh yeah, I'd forgotten about these! I gotta remember to thank Brendan later." Grinning victoriously, Ash he smirked while standing his ground.

"Don't think just because you found a way to block my lasers doesn't mean you've won. Laser Strike!" Misty threw 4 beams of light at Ash.

With a side-step, Ash dodged two of the lasers and reflected the remaining two back at Misty. "Eat that!"

"Nice try!" With a smirk, Misty smacked the two beams with her own steel-plated gloves.

_ZAM!_

"Ack!" Ash received two shots to his chest, making him hold his chest painfully.

"_Ash, look out!"_ Satoshi warned urgently.

Ash glanced upward just in time to see several rays being hurled at him. He blocked the lasers with his gauntlet, reflecting the attack. Misty started dashing at Ash while reflecting the beams of light, going on the offensive. The raven haired spirit host clapped his hands together. "Shadow Shift!" Sinking into his own shadow, Ash successfully avoided the laser strikes and Misty's physical attacks.

"_Misty! Beware of that attack! It's one of Satoshi's signature moves, the Shadow Shift."_ Kasumi warned.

"_Shadow Shift? What's that?"_ Misty wondered, looking around for any hint of Ash.

"_The Shadow Shift allows the user to teleport from one shadow to another. Creating a small portal inside the shadow, the ability allows Satoshi to appear almost anywhere that has a shadow. We must be cautious."_

"_I don't think he's going to attack though. He doesn't seem like he's going to fight back anytime soon. But just in case, I'll use that new attack I learned last night."_ After training with Jam and Farah, Misty learned quite a few fighting techniques, a good number of them focused on Mana control. She closed her eyes and straightened out her hands and tightened the muscles slightly. _'Focus…concentrate…channel the energy…!'_ Her hands brimmed with soft yellow energy. _'There, I did it! Now for Ash…'_ Her eyes glanced over at a rock, which had a spot of black hair visible from the other side…

"_Stop playing around, dammit! Counterattack already! fight back!" _Satoshi harped angrily.

"But how do I do that without harming her? What can I do…?" Ash's time for thinking was cut short when he noticed Misty lunging in the air, her hands pulled back for slashing.

_SLASH!_

The hunk of rock Ash was hiding behind was slashed cleaning by Misty's hands, causing him to back up in fear. He never knew Misty was capable of slashing with just her hands, but if anything, he did not want to be cut in half by those glowing hands. "Shadow Claw!" Channeling the dark energy into his claw-formed hands, Ash prepared a defense, at least he hoped, against Misty's attack.

"Here we go! Laser Blades!" Misty darted along the ground like a bullet, targeting Ash with her laser blades. She thrust her hands at Ash in rapid succession, forcing the boy to jump back, duck, and parry the stab attacks. After a dozen or so attempts, Misty changed to a combination of slashes and thrust attacks. Ash had to put his flexibility to the test, doing everything from back-flipping over horizontal slashes to performing a rolling dodge in the air. Ash had a hard time avoiding Misty, whose agility and flexibility far outranked his own. This, as a result, gave Ash slight, but numerous injures.

Ash's annoyance was overcoming his reluctance to strike back as Misty's speed started to increase, making it impossible to dodge many of the attacks. The scratches on his body were bothersome, and he didn't want this battle to drag out any longer than he had to. "That's it. RAH!" Ash swiped at Misty, catching her off guard.

SLASH!

Misty gasped as she jumped away, surprised with Ash's sudden attack. Ash almost got her good with the Shadow Claw, just barely grazing her shirt. "Ack!" Looking down, she noticed that a piece of her yellow shirt was cut off, revealing her shoulder. "Hey, watch where you're swinging that thing!"

"Huh, oh, my bad." Ash smiled nervously, a tint of red in his cheeks. "…Wait a minute…!" His nervous smile gradually changed into a mischievous one. _"Satoshi, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" _

Satoshi malevolent grin couldn't have been any wider. _"Oh ho ho! This beats injuring Misty by a LONG shot! Go for it!"_

Misty grew worried when Ash started chuckling to himself, or rather, Satoshi. "Err…are you alright?"

"Oh I'm more than alright! I'm doing great now that I found a way to defeat you! Now, I don't have to worry about holding back too much! Hahaha!" Ash laughed victoriously.

Safe to say, both Kasumi and Misty were startled and confused. _"Maybe…maybe he's just bluffing! There's no way he could've figured out how to win, especially since he missed that attack. Did he come up with something?" _Kasumi pondered.

"I don't know what you thought of Ash, but it's not gonna work! Laser Blades!" Misty dashed at Ash again, prepared to go for a second round.

"Shadow Shift!" Ash disappeared from sight, avoiding a powerful slash from Misty.

"He teleported!" Misty turned around to see Ash appearing from behind a rock, high in the air.

"Shadow Claw…!" Ash pulled back his hand, which was enveloped with darkness mana.

'_A Shadow Claw from that range? That would never work…unless…he has something else planned…!'_ Misty analyzed Ash's movements, preparing herself for whatever was to come.

"…Extend!" Ash thrust his hand forward, sending a form of the Shadow Claw at Misty, except the attack had a long trail of dark energy attached to Ash's arm.

'_He extended his attack!?'_ Misty was taken by surprise, unable to avoid the attack.

_SLASH!_

"Ah!" Misty gasped in surprise, only to realize she wasn't hurt by the attack at all. _'Impossible! He missed? If so, why does he still have that smirk on his face…?'_ She glanced at where the attack missed. At that moment, her eyes widened in horror, realizing what Ash really was aiming at.

It was her clothes.

The proof was on her side where the attack missed, a large piece of clothing was missing, revealing a part of her stomach. "Ash! What has gotten into you!?" She shouted, thoroughly embarrassed.

Ash landed on the ground, his smirk broadening. "You didn't really think I would attack you, right Misty? I would never do that to you. But, as far as embarrassing you to death, I'm up for that anytime! Shadow Claw!" At that moment, he started thrusting his arms in rapid succession, throwing a repetition of flying Shadow Claws.

"Hurry, dodge it!" Kasumi yelled.

"I know, I know!" Misty started back flipping continuously, avoiding the long-ranged claw attack from Ash. With her last flip, she jumped high in the air, avoiding a majority of Shadow Claw attacks. She threw lasers at the remaining Shadow Claws. While in the air, Ash double jumped forward and lunged at Misty, diving through the girl's laser rays.

_CLASH!_

Ash gritted his teeth as his attack was guarded by Misty's Laser Blades. Repeatedly, Ash tried to cut off a piece of clothing, only to have Misty's swift body turn and twist to dodge and her Laser Blades parry Ash's attacks. Misty was too light and swift for Ash to land a hit, only able to leave small scratches on her shorts and shirt. Once the two landed, they jumped apart, taking small breaths.

'_Man, I never thought Misty would be this tough. Her nimble body is hand to land a hit on…and the way she dodges my attacks…and those curves…and…'_ A small drool escaped Ash's lips as his eyes were suddenly glazed over, wearing a dreamy look.

"_Stay focused you pervert!"_ Satoshi snapped, bringing Ash back to reality.

'_Oh right, sorry. Okay, time for a new plan. This is where Pikachu comes in.'_ Ash nodded to Pikachu, who nodded back in response. Pikachu, who had known Misty for a lengthy amount of time, would never wish to cause her any harm. Last night however, he and Ash made an agreement. He would only respond to defensive moves that would help aid Ash. Should Misty summon her own Pokémon however…it would be a different story.

"_Hmph, I still say the rat should fry that little brat!"_ Satoshi huffed.

'_Quit your belly aching already!'_ Ash groaned. "Pikachu, let's do this!"

"Pika!" Pikachu ran to his partner's side, awaiting his commands.

'_I don't know what he has planned, but I know for certain Pikachu would never attack me. But just in case…'_ Misty unclipped a Pokémon from her belt and activated it. "Corsola, let's do it!"

Corsola emerged into the field in its chipper mood. "Corsola! Corsola!"

"Corsola, come here. Let's do our special combination." Misty called Corsola over. To everyone's surprise, Corsola latched herself onto Misty's arm, holding onto her forearm. "Alright Corsola, let's show Ash our teamwork!"

"Corsola!"

"What the…?" Ash, the living definition of teamwork, never thought of such a combination. But with this gave new problems. Now it would be very difficult to try and defeat Corsola to get to Misty. It also didn't help that Pikachu couldn't attack Corsola now. Who knew what kinds of techniques the two developed? "We're not gonna let Misty show us up, right Pikachu?"

"Pika…!" Pikachu was obviously astonished and proud of Misty thinking outside the box. It also showed with him giving Misty the thumbs up.

"Pikachu! This is no time to be impressed! Quick, use Thunder Wave!"

"Pika!" Pikachu made an X with his tiny arms, denying the attack.

"What, that too? That isn't an offensive attack! Come on, throw me a bone here!"

"Pi. Ka." Pikachu said firmly.

"Arg…! That's so many attacks I can't use now!" Ash groaned. Given Thunder Wave didn't cause damage, Ash figured Pikachu would allow that, but no such luck. This left Ash as the offender of the two. There was much more to consider now that he couldn't paralyze Misty or her Corsola.

"Laser Strike!" Misty shot a dozen lasers at Ash and Pikachu.

Ash and Pikachu dashed to the side, dodging the fury of lasers being shot at them. It was time for strategy. "Pikachu, use Flash!" Thankfully, Pikachu abided to the command and unleashed a bright light, disrupting Misty's aim. While blinded, Ash took the chance to go on the attack. "Shadow Claw!"

_SLASH!_

"Ah!" Misty gasped as a long Shadow Claw slashed a bit of her shorts, revealing a white panty strap and some skin. Her face flushed, both out of embarrassment and fury. "SPIKE CANNON!"

"Yipe!" After seeing the angry look on Misty's face, Ash started sprinting and jumping across the battlefield, escaping the redheaded menace. A lot of the rocks were destroyed due to Brock and Soma's battle, the terrain still devastated. In Ash's current state, he was running out of hiding places. Not to mention the fact Misty was much faster than he was, and was quickly catching up.

_ZAM!_

"Ack!" Ash tripped and tumbled, getting shot in the leg by Misty's Laser Strike.

"I got you now!" Misty shouted, closing in.

"Grr…Shadow Claw!" Ash thrust his arm forward, shooting a long range claw attack.

"Let's see if my guess is right…Corsola, Mirror Coat!" Misty guarded with Corsola, who emitted a red barrier around Misty.

To Ash's surprised, his attack was reflected back at him.

_WHAM!_

Ash received a direct hit to his chest, getting pushed a fair distance before rolling back onto his feet. He was beyond surprised with how his attack was reflected. This only made his situation graver. "Looks like I got no choice. Prepare yourself Misty, for my special attack!"

Misty made a small smile. "Special attack? I doubt it's anything that can't be thrown back at you, right Corsola?"

"Corsola!"

"Here we go…!" Ash pulled his fist back, clenching it tightly. He could almost feel Misty's nervousness and anticipation. Right then, he made his move. "Hey Misty, what's that?" He asked, pointing behind Misty.

Misty almost fell over in surprised, astounded by Ash's stupidity. "That has got to be the oldest trick in the book! I knew you were dumb, but if you think I would fall for—"

"Pi…ka…!"

"What, Pikachu!?" Misty gasped, forgetting about the electric rodent. She whirled around, preparing to aim Corsola at Pikachu. But suddenly…

_GLOMP!_

"WAAA! I CAN'T SEE!" Misty screeched as Pikachu clamped himself onto her face, blinding the girl.

"Way to go, Pikachu!" Ash praised proudly. Misty might've had tricks and teamwork, but Ash had experience and trust in his pikapal, something that took many years to develop into sheer instinct. 'Now's my chance!' He pushed his legs as fast as they could go before Misty could break loose from Pikachu's firm grip.

"Get off already, Pikachu!" Misty managed to tear Pikachu off of her face, but it was too late to counter Ash's offense.

This time, instead of a Shadow Claw, Ash used a technique he had practiced with Recca last night. A dark energy blade extruded from Ash's forearms as he lunged at Misty. "Shadow Blade!"

_SLASH! SLASH!_

"AHH!" Misty's clothes were torn ragged, most of it barely hanging onto her skin. Her t-shirt was nothing more than tattered straps, unable to hide her white bra. Her shorts were no longer shorts, but merely shredded clothing hanging on for dear life.

Ash started chuckling at Misty's. "So Misty, still feel like fighting? You know, you can always just forfeit the match and get some new clothes. Heck, I'll even pay for it with the prize money I'm gonna get. Not a bad deal, huh?"

"_Hmm…"_ Satoshi had his doubts about Ash's 'victory'. A woman's body is very sacred. Most women would die of embarrassment being stripped down by their opponent, especially when they were being viewed by many, if not hundreds, of perverted males. However, Misty's determination seemed a little too strong for that. It was possible Ash was underestimating her.

Misty was silent. She held an unreadable expression on her face as she recalled Corsola. "Ash…" Her fingers curled into a tight fist, her teeth biting into her lips. "Was that…your plan the entire time?"

Ash grew worried with the serious, but low, tone. Maybe he over did it. "Well…yeah. Couldn't think of anything else. I'm not gonna hurt you, and that's that."

"Is…" Misty looked away for a moment, her eyes starting to water. She then faced Ash, revealing fury that had never seen the light of day until now. "IS THIS SOME KIND OF GAME TO YOU!?"

Her roar cut through Ash like a cleaver, swift and powerful. "A game? What are you talking about?"

"I asked for a serious match! Fight me, damn it! Don't fool around like you always do! We aren't kids playing some game of freaking tag, but a real life battle! I thought you understood the weight of this tournament the minute you entered, but apparently, you didn't!"

"Now wait a minute!" Ash stepped forward, his face growing stern. "I AM taking this match seriously! Stop treating me like a kid!"

"I'll stop treating you like one the day you don't act like one! Take things more seriously!"

"I have been this entire time!"

Misty had a disgusted look on her face. "Is THIS your idea of serious? Trying to strip me into defeat!? What's next, a staring contest?"

"What's the big idea, huh? What's with you all of the sudden? Start making sense already!"

Misty opted to make another yell, but settled for a sigh. "I should've expected this. You act like you understand everything, but in the end, you don't understand anything. You just go on a whim and hope everything goes right. It's to be expected from a child. Then so be it!" She straitened herself up, giving Ash a dreadful glare. "Since you can't take things seriously, I'll have to do it for you! If you don't defeat me in this round…OUR FRIENDSHIP IS OVER!!"

"Have you lost your mind!? I'm not going to agree with that! I don't know what your plan is, but cut it out!"

"This isn't a deal, it's a condition! If you can't take this battle seriously, then you're not taking me seriously! What's the point of traveling with someone if that person doesn't take you seriously!?"

"You must be confused. I most definitely take you seriously! Take that back!"

"I'm not going to lie just to make you feel better! Stop trying to act cool and give me all you got!" A burst of energy suddenly exploded from Misty, surprising Ash. "I've had enough of these games! It's do or die, Ash! If you lose this match, you lose me too! If you care about me at all as a friend, you'll wise up and do what's right!" Before Ash could react, Misty faded from sight, moving at a speed too fast for Ash's eyes.

_WHAM!_

Ash made a sharp gasp, feeling Misty's knee ram into his gut. With a loud battle cry, Misty delivered a super fast series of punches. Taken off guard, Ash was left unable to defend himself. After a crushing blow to the face, Ash was sent flying back. He was about to recover when he suddenly noticed a fast array of lasers swarming at him. He crossed his arms to block the attack, but Misty dashed right under his guard, rolling forward into a handstand.

_POW!_

Misty thrust both of her feet into Ash's stomach, temporarily stunning the boy's breathing. At that point, he dropped his guard just at the lasers arrived, hitting him dead on. Due to the force of Misty's kick, Ash was sent crashing into the ground, receiving intense damage. Ash recovered, trying to catch his breath. Unfortunately for him, Misty was hot on his heels. "FIGHT ME ALREADY! LASER BLADES!" Her hands acted as daggers, slashing and thrusting at Ash. The boy tried his best to block the attacks, but it proved useless. The gym leader was moving at least twice as fast as earlier. Stab wounds and gashes were appearing in small, but high number very fast.

"_Ash! Forget about your chivalry crap! Fight back already, otherwise you're really going to lose!"_ Satoshi urged.

'_Never! I'm not going to lose Misty, nor am I going to strike her!'_ Ash stated strongly.

"Is this all you got Ash? If this is all your training has amounted to, then it's pathetic!" Misty started thrashing Ash with various palm strikes, pushing him back blow after blow. "STOP ACTING LIKE A WUSS!"

_SLAM!_

With a twin palm strike to the chest, Ash was slammed against a wall, coughing up small amounts of blood. Misty gripped Ash by the scruff of his collar, lifting up against the rock. "So Ash, ready to fight back?"

Ash flashed Misty a weak smile, as well as a small chuckle. "…You hit like a girl…"

Misty's anger flared once again. "You little…! RAAAAH…!" Preparing to finish it, Misty struck Ash with a rain of attacks, her strikes moving in blur-like motion. Ash was being drilled through the thick rock slowly and painfully with each hit. When satisfied with the amount of damage done, Misty pulled her fist back for the final blow. "GATLING BARRAGE!"

_POW! CRASH!_

The rock couldn't take anymore punishment as it shattered, Ash flying through it. His body rolled along the ground and halted. His body showed signs of breathing, revealing he was indeed alive. He was no longer in his spirit-sync form, and there was no sign of Satoshi anywhere.

Misty started walking towards him when something, or rather someone, stepped in front of her.

It was Pikachu.

"Pika! Pikapi pikachu!" Pikachu cried, very upset.

"…It's not like I enjoyed doing that, Pikachu, but it needed to be done." Misty knew Pikachu was upset with her. It wouldn't be a surprised if the rat ended up hating her, but this was an issue she could no longer ignore. As she walked towards him, she noticed a strange pulse emanating from him. And surprisingly, Ash started to stand up, but not without clutching his side. His breath came out in strong gasp, as though he was suffocating.

"A-air…c-can't breathe…h-help me Misty…" Ash gasped, clutching his chest in pain.

Misty's previous anger was eliminated by guilt, worry and fear. She must've really over done it and damaged his lungs. "Ash!" She and Pikachu ran up to Ash, checking on his condition. "I'm so sorry! I really overdid it! Let me help you!"

Ash gently held onto Misty's shoulder with his hand. His eyes were covered by the shadows of his bangs, his lips slowly curving into a grin. "No need…you've already did. Allow me to return the favor…"

"…Huh?" Misty grew curious over Ash's tone of voice, as well as his hand tightening on her shoulder.

_POW!_

Ash's fist crashed into Misty's face, making her fly off a few feet. Landing roughly on the ground, she screamed in pain, the sneak attack causing surprisingly high damage. The last thing she expected was such an underhanded trick. She sat up, shooting Ash a shocked look. "Ash! What was that all about?" Her answered came in the strangest in forms.

Laughter.

"Hmhmhm….HAHAHAHA! That was rich! If only you can see the look on your face! It was priceless! I haven't felt this good in 5000 years!" Ash laughed darkly, clutching his sides.

"5000 years…! You don't mean that…" Misty's eyes widened, horrified with what had just transpired. Kasumi was rendered speechless.

The battle had suddenly taken a turn for the worst.

Satoshi clenched his fist, flashing Misty a look of sheer malice and battle-lust. "Give it up, cause' now I'm back!"

* * *

SUPER SHOCKER-RIFIC CLIFFIE! At least, I hope it was. One reason I like shorter chapters, easier to manage and create cliff hangers. I hope you enjoy this kind of chapter rather than the long, drawn-out ones. I'll probably make those once in a while, but no longer every chapter. After all, I DO want to finish this story in my lifetime. Please review and stay tuned for more goodness. 


	17. Clash of Light and Darkness! Part 2

_**Clash of light and darkness – Part 2**_

Cerulean City – Battlefield

"Hehehe…this feels good…" Satoshi flexed his hands, clenching and unclenching his fist. "This feels really good…!" His eyes shifted towards a startled Misty, a malicious grin forming on his lips. "Now that the fool is no longer in the way, we can do things my way."

"W-w-what…but, how did you…" Misty took a step back, astounded with what had transpired. She tried to be strong, but the look on Satoshi's face was frightening. It was clear he wanted to do a lot more than just fight her. "How did you take over Ash's body?"

"What, you didn't realize it earlier? You're the one who made it happen after all."

"I did?"

"Of course. There's a key factor involved that you morons have been neglecting this whole time. When you had us merge with you fools, we literally fused with each other, including our mental wavelengths. After that humiliating beatdown, Ash's consciousness was weak enough for me to claim control, a method known as Override-sync."

"Override? Don't you mean hostile take over?" Misty snapped at him angrily.

"Oh ho ho, I wouldn't start shooting your mouth off too quickly. Ash is gonna be out of commission for a good while. I suppose you can say he left me in charge. I'll be sure to pick up where Ash left off." Kneeling in a running stance, Satoshi started tapping into his dark powers. Dark energy veiled his body like a shield, faint yet noticeable. "I'll start off by crushing you!" With a quick sprint, Satoshi started running in zig-zag patterns, almost too fast for Misty's eye to catch.

(Sonata Arctica – 8th Commandment)

"Whoa, he's fast!" Misty crossed her arms, preparing to throw a hail of lasers at Satoshi. "Laser Stri—"

"Shadow Shift!" In that instant, Satoshi vanished without a trace.

"Hmph, that trick again? Probably hiding behind a rock or something." Misty was used to seeing the technique of Shadow Shift, seeing how Ash would use it to hide behind cover. However, she made one miscalculation.

Satoshi was the one in control of this battle.

"Look alive, wench!" Satoshi yelled, rising from behind Misty. Misty turned to see Satoshi rushing right at her. "Shadow Kick!"

_WHAM!_

"Ngh!" Receiving the kick in the face, Misty was knocked back by the surprise attack. But Satoshi wasn't done.

Landing on one leg, Satoshi was quick to prepare the next attack. "I'm gonna deliver the pain you have caused us 1000 fold! Shadow Talon!" Satoshi started kicking his foot at Misty in super fast repetition, shooting off a series of long range kicks. The attack was that of a Shadow Kick, except the toe area was replaced with large, sharp raptor talons.

The attacks were shredding Misty's skin badly, cuts and gashes appearing quickly. "Barrier!" A yellow shield appeared in front of Misty, blocking the wave of Shadow Talons.

"Hmph. Stupid barrier." Satoshi stopped his barrage and placed his foot on the ground. "It'll be too troublesome to go around it. Looks like I'll have to just get rid of it." Sliding his foot and fist back, he held forward his open hand, using it to measure and aim his attack.

"What is he doing? He doesn't think he could penetrate my barrier, does he?" Misty placed extra mana into her shield in case Satoshi had that kind of power.

Unfortunately for her, he did.

"Shadow Lance!" With a quick thrust of his fist, a narrow beam of energy shot out towards Misty. The attack pierced through the barrier, shattering it like glass. Luckily for Misty, the attack just missed her face. "Damn. Looks like I missed."

Seeing the power of the attack, Misty was scared stiff. She was completely convinced he was going to kill her. Though her mind was trying to overcome the moment of fear, her body didn't respond. Kasumi was immediately worried. "Misty! Do not falter! We must defeat him!"

Watching Misty paralyzed in fear, Satoshi frowned. "Is that it? Just a minute ago, you were shooting your mouth off and trying to act all cool, but now you got what you wanted, and you want to back out? Tch, to think we overestimated you two by so far. If you're going to chicken out already, then why the hell you decide to enter the tournament? Why did you bother coming along if you're going to get scared? Show some backbone, wench!"

Misty couldn't deny his words. If everyone was going to fight powerful enemies like Soma, she couldn't just freak out at everything little thing. This was what she trained for. After some struggling, she started overcoming her moment of surprise. "Yeah, I got it. I just got a little surprised, that's all." She held a confident smirk, readying herself for round 2.

'_Hmm…looks like combat power wasn't the only thing she gained during her training.'_ Satoshi pondered, getting interested. "But, you also made one other mistake, and one that will cost you this match."

"And what mistake would that be?"

"You've put my host into quite a predicament. You treat the fact he doesn't want to fight you as a weakness WITHOUT fully understanding the man behind the words." Satoshi thought back on the small conversation he had with Ash before he took over. It was around the time Misty started making a comeback while fighting Ash.

Flashback

"_Ash, I don't get you. Why don't you just fight back already? Isn't better to have an injured friend rather than lose one other a matter so stupid?" Satoshi interrogated. _

"_Satoshi…are you saying that keeping your honor is stupid…?" Ash questioned mentally._

"_What? Of course not! But…"_

"_But nothing. I hate to be the one to say it, but you're being a hypocrite! You talk about having a friend rather than losing one over something dumb, but you're doing that same thing with Kasumi!"_

"_You little brat! What do you know about betrayal?"_

"_Didn't you do the same thing?"_

"_Ah…well…"_

"_I love my friends, and I wouldn't want to lose them for anything. It would hurt to lose my friends, but it would be worse if I fought them over a hat and some shards. I don't know what happened to you guys back then, but that was 5000 years ago. Times have changed, Satoshi. Instead of learning how to hate, learn how to forgive. Things happened that were out of you and everyone else's hands. Just because they belonged to different sides doesn't mean they're no longer your friend. Sure, friends fight and argue, but true friends will always be that. That's what I believe and will continue to believe in until the end..."_

End of flashback

'_I made a foolish mistake in underestimating that kid. He may be young and idiotic at times, but from what I've seen, he has what it takes to be a real man.'_ Satoshi smiled to himself. Ash proved himself worthy of his respect. "You've labeled Ash's honor as a weakness. To doubt a man's code is worse than killing him. I'll make sure you pay for your insolence." Tightening his fist, he prepared the make a mad dash at Misty.

"That's weird. You don't seem like the kind of person who would fight for others. I guess you really do have a redeeming quality."

"Hmph, don't get it twisted. I'm only finishing this battle since Ash couldn't do it. It's only motivation to defeat you. I only have one reason to fight in this tournament." With that, Satoshi started sprinting forward, his hands brimming with darkness mana. "And that's to settle things with the Raikeizian once and for all! Shadow Whip!" Satoshi lashed at her with a flurry of Shadow Whips.

"Laser Blades!" Misty charged at Satoshi as well, deflecting the whips that were attacking her. While running, she didn't notice a Shadow Whip latching itself onto a rock behind her.

Retracting the dark energy whip, Satoshi used it to pull himself at Misty like a grapple hook. The sudden increase of speed took Misty by surprise. "Eat this! Shadow Stomp!" With a flip in the air, Satoshi landed on Misty's chest and started stepping on her with a series of painful steps. After 6 steps, Satoshi kicked off her and bounced in the air.

_WHAM!_

Satoshi shot an extended Shadow Kick at Misty with both of his legs to finish off the combo attack. Luckily, Misty fixed up a barrier to block the last attack. "Laser Strike!"

_ZAM!_

Satoshi grunted as he blocked the laser attack with his arms, which were burning from the beams. While falling, Satoshi disappeared, using Shadow Shift while landing. Misty's hands brimmed with light powers, readying to attack. After counting off the top of her head, she took a swing behind her.

_SLASH!_

"Ngh…!" Satoshi reeled back as a Laser Blade slashed his chest.

"Hah! I knew it!" Misty exclaimed victoriously, adding another slash onto Satoshi. "3 seconds. Whenever you use your Shadow Shift, there's a 3 second delay before you are teleported. I got you now!" Going offensive, Misty started slashing at Satoshi with her laser-powered hands. Activating his Shadow Clash, Satoshi started attacking back, keeping a firm balance of advantage.

"Don't think you know everything girly! I have more years in combat experience than you've lived! RAAAH!" Increasing his aggressiveness, Satoshi started pushing Misty back.

_CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!_

Shadow Claws and Laser Blades countered each other again and again, equal in destructive ability. Satoshi gritted his teeth as he started putting more power into his attacks. _'Damn. If this was my original body, this battle would've been over by now. Luckily, I have knowledge and a good bit of my mana. But even still, looks like Kasumi's host has gotten much stronger. Certainly can't call her a weakling anymore.'_ Though Satoshi was enjoying the battle, this was not the person he wanted to face. "Kasumi! You know what I really want, and you do as well! Come out and fight me!"

'_I see…so that's his reason for taking over Ash. Would he really go so far just to fight her? Heh, that's probably a stupid question.'_ Misty was debating on what she should do. Either let Kasumi take over the battle and see where it goes, if she could see that is, or try finishing the battle on her on. Her only fear was what Kasumi would do to Satoshi, especially considering Satoshi was using Ash's body. As it stood so far, Satoshi by far had the advantage in strength and combat knowledge.

"…_I…want to fight him…"_ Kasumi spoke slowly._ "I understand you are worried about your friend, but rest assured, I won't kill him. Any injuries he suffers you can probably heal later."_

_WHAM!_

Misty stumbled back from Satoshi Shadow Punch, struggling to maintain ground. As she should've guessed, it isn't such a good idea to talk with spiritual partners while fighting. She wrapped an arm around her stomach, wincing in pain. "Hey…how do I switch with Kasumi?"

Satoshi stopped his advance. "Hm…all I know is that you have to be unconscious while maintaining a strong level of mana. At that point, Kasumi must put all her strength into taking over your consciousness. Also, you can't be spirit-synced, otherwise you both would just end up unconscious.

'_I hope this is a good idea. I'm going to trust you Kasumi.'_ Closing her eyes, Misty clasped her hands together, relaxing her tensed body. At that moment, her body tone and hair regained their original shade. "Let's see…how I have to allow Kasumi to take over my conscious, but how do I—"

Kasumi made a sudden gasp in alarm. "MISTY, LOOK OU—"

_SMACK!_

A full powered punch from Satoshi sent Misty flying, landing on the ground with a long skid. "You can thank Ash for that one." He almost felt bad for doing causing such injuries to Misty that Ash tried so hard to avoid. Almost.

Watching the battle as the judge, Violet was shocked with the sudden change of pace. At first, Ash was trying to avoid attacking Misty, but now he was practically dominating her. Though she badly wanted to end the battle, she knew her sister realized what she was getting into. She could only hope that nothing too serious would happen to either of them. Being a good distance from the battle field, she couldn't hear what was going on. However, it was clear there was something different about them, besides their change in appearances. It was almost as if they were completely different people, mainly with Ash.

Noticing Misty wasn't getting up, Violet was prepared to declare the victor. She was about to step forward to check on Misty's condition when Satoshi stopped her. "Wait. This battle is far from done." Tilting his head, he gave Violet a dead serious glance. "You might want to get away from here. This place is about to turn into a war zone." And then his eyes narrowed dangerously. "The last thing we need is casualties in the crossfire. Interruption of the fight will not be tolerated by either of us."

Violet swallowed in fear. That boy definitely didn't sound like Ash. His voice was a little deeper, almost threatening. It made her shiver to think the Ash she knew had somehow changed so drastically. "Um…ok." Taking his advice, Violet stepped away from the battlefield, making sure she could still see them clearly.

A frown appeared on Satoshi's face, growing impatient. Misty's body was still in its unconscious form. Where was Kasumi? "Hmph, what's with this wench? Making me wait. I'll wake her up." Satoshi started moving forward when he felt a sharp pain on the back of his leg. "Tch, what the hell?" Looking down, he saw Pikachu biting his leg. "Back off rodent." With a kick, he managed to get free of Pikachu's fangs.

Landing on all fours, Pikachu started growling at Satoshi." Pika! Pika pikapi!"

"You waste your breath, rat. I don't understand a word you're saying. If you're worried about your master, don't be. He'll be back."

"Pika…!" Pikachu's cheeks started cackling with electricity, preparing to shock Satoshi. But suddenly, he stopped, staring at something behind Satoshi.

"Hm…! That energy…!" Satoshi turned around, seeing Misty standing up. Her body was battered and scratched, possibly as much as Satoshi's body was. Her usual ponytail hairstyle fell down, loosened by the constant battle. Though frazzled and messy from the fight, it still held beauty in its own right. What impressed Satoshi was the valiant posture of her body, as though she was a warrior about to face a legion alone. That look of strength belonged to one person, someone he knew better than anyone. "Took you long enough, Kasumi. Have a nice nap?"

"You are way too damn bold, treating my host like that." Kasumi threw Satoshi a dirty look, annoyed by the smug one she was receiving.

Crossing his arms, Satoshi flashed a toothy grin. "She may've gotten stronger, but she still doesn't understand the workings of a man. Of course, I assume her stupidity came from a certain Raikeizian."

"Tch, your mouth hasn't changed a bit. It's not my fault your host has such an old fashioned sense of honor. It's commendable, but misplaced."

"Honor is never misplaced, merely challenged." Satoshi replied. He closed his eyes for a moment, thinking to himself.

"What's this, thinking of some sort of insult? Some smart comment about my host? I'm sure you got a million of them." Kasumi shot. She was prepared for just about any negative comment that was about to fly out of the darkness guardian's mouth.

"…When I stop to think about it, it's amusing and true."

Kasumi blinked, confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Here we are, the perfect setting for our battle. No holds barred. Anything goes. We could have our final battle here and now. But tell me, have you noticed that something is missing? Don't you feel it?"

"Are you trying to confuse me or something? Are you talking about weapons or something? Because I don't need weapons to defeat you."

Suddenly, Satoshi sighed. His eyes opened slightly, revealing a mix of sadness and questioning. "…Do you really hate me that much?"

Kasumi stepped back, taken aback by the sudden question. "O-of course I do! I despise you! So much that I want to kill you. You feel the same as well, don't you?"

"..." Satoshi held his chin thoughtfully, taking things into consideration. Ever since the last conversation with Ash, he had been doing a lot of thinking, noticing things he hadn't before. Had Ash not made such comments, he probably would've missed out on something very important.

For the first time in a long time, Kasumi was starting to feel a little scared. Whenever Satoshi had that thoughtful look on his face, it was always something important. Another frightening point was the fact he didn't answer the question, raising even more question in her mind. "Answer my question, Satoshi! Do you hate me or not!?"

"…Whether I did or didn't, would it change our situation?" The spirit asked seriously.

Kasumi found herself speechless, unable to bring herself to answer. _'No, stop that now! This is your chance! Don't let him try to confuse you!'_ Shaking her head, she fixed her dark glare at Satoshi. "What, after all of that trash talking, you're gonna try and chicken out now?"

"Not at all. This is something I've been wanting for a long time. It's just…no, nevermind. We've wasted too much time as it is. Ash will be waking up soon, so I have no time to waste." Satoshi took a battle stance, ready to fight. "It's now or never, Kasumi! This will be our final battle!"

"Now THAT'S the Satoshi I recognize." In Kasumi's hand, a ball of light started glowing brightly. "I finally have a chance to end all of this. No longer do I have to put up with one more minute of this existence. I don't care what the cost is…!" The light energy suddenly started to transform, taking the shape of a long sword. "I WILL KILL YOU!"

(Realize – FLOW)

With unholy speed, Kasumi ran up to Satoshi with her light-based sword. Satoshi performed a backflip before receiving a lethal horizontal slash from Kasumi. "Oh no you don't!" Running forward again, she jumped in the air and twirled her body into a high-speed kick, catching Satoshi just as he landed on his feet. Satoshi was knocked back by the attack, but Kasumi wasn't done yet. Using the aero shoe's double jump function, she boosted downward onto the ground, landing under Satoshi's guard.

_SLASH!_

"Arg…!" Satoshi seethed in pain as the sword sliced his chest. It wasn't very deep, but it didn't help it was laser-powered, making for painful aftereffects.

"HIYAAAAA!" Kasumi exploded at Satoshi with a barrage of stab and slash attacks with her laser sword.

A dozen attacks a second, Satoshi knew he wouldn't last long if he even dared to try and match her speed. He took the risk of forcefully breaking through Kasumi's sword barrage, earning him a stab in the shoulder. "Shadow Punch!"

_SMACK!_

Satoshi managed to land 3 quick jabs at Kasumi before she rolled to the side and pulled back her light blade. "Laser Flash!"

_CHING!_

Kasumi made a lightning fast swipe at Satoshi, who managed to duck under the attack just in time. Large rock formations were sliced cleanly from the invisible attack. She cursed her luck for missing.

Satoshi cursed his luck period.

'_Dammit, I can't be slacking now! She really is trying to kill me!'_ Satoshi realized with a start, tensing his body even more. _'I'm gonna have to pull out all the big guns for this one.'_ "Shadow Claw!" Satoshi lunged at Kasumi with a powerful claw swipe, but she jumped and flipped over the attack, landing in a crouch behind Satoshi. With a spin, she turned to perform a low slash, but the darkness guardian managed to perform a acrobatic side flip over the attack, landing on his feet.

_CLASH!_

Just as Satoshi prepared to slash Kasumi with his claws of darkness, Kasumi erected another laser sword to parry the attack. "Hmph, too predictable." She brought back her sword and leapt over Satoshi with both blades ready for attack. "Twin Laser Flash!"

_SLASH!_

A deep crater in the shape of an X was carved into the ground where Satoshi stood, or at least, used to. Kasumi gasped as she felt a presence above her. "That makes both of us." Satoshi flashed his palms at Kasumi. "Shadow Blast!"

_BOOM!_

"AAH!" Kasumi received a powerful force blast from Satoshi, shooting her towards the ground. A loud crash soon followed.

"Damn that woman…she was a beast then, and still is now. How did she retain THAT much of her strength?" Satoshi was panting for air, having to put a lot of effort into the Shadow Blast.

_ZAM!_

"…!" Satoshi's eyes widened in pain, staring into his upper shoulder.

It was pierced by an arrow of light.

"Hmph, overconfident as always." Once the dust cleared, Kasumi could be seen crouching on one knee, holding what appeared to be a bow and arrow set made of solid light.

Using his shadow powers, Satoshi grabbed onto the arrow, causing it to dissipate. "Grr…" He stared at Kasumi with seething anger, one eye closed from the intense pain in his shoulder.

Kasumi prepared another shot, aiming at Satoshi. "This time, you won't escape."

"'friad I'm gonna have to disagree. Shadow Shift!" Satoshi teleported, just dodging an arrow shot.

Like I said…" Kasumi aimed her weapon into the sky. "YOU WON'T ESCAPE!" She shot dozens of arrows into the air rapid fire, charging them up with light mana.

Satoshi emerged out of a shadow behind some cover, preparing to make his next move. He glanced upward just in time to see an arrow heading straight at him. "Whoa…!" He jumped back in time to dodge it, but paled to see many more flying everywhere. He spent more time trying to dodge the hail of arrows than attempt to attack Kasumi.

"You're at a disadvantage, Satoshi! During the day time, not only does my power increase, but my mana consumption decreases! Yours is quite the opposite. You cannot hope to win this battle!" Spinning on her heels, Kasumi shot several more arrows at Satoshi.

"That's it, enough fooling around. RAAAAH!" Activating Shadow Claw and Shadow Talon, Satoshi began deflecting the storm of light arrows flying from all directions, making spins and twist to keep up the momentum. Just as he spun to knock down an arrow, his eyes widened in surprise.

A giant, four blade shuriken made of light energy was flying at him.

"Ack!" Time seemed to slow down as Satoshi bent backwards, the giant flying weapon missed just by a hair. "H…h…holy geez…! That was too close!"

_CLASH!_

Satoshi caught a laser sword between his hands just in time as Kasumi made a lethal lunge at him from the air. "You always were a relentless beast in combat."

"And you were always annoying to deal with, whether it be combat or otherwise."

_WHAM!_

Satoshi thrust his foot into Kasumi's stomach, forcing the Raikeizian spirit to back off. Remembering her tactics, Satoshi glanced back to see the giant light shuriken flying back at him, targeting his head. "You're finished!" Kasumi yelled lunging at him from the front.

'_Let's see…get impaled or lose my head. She always did like ultimatums.'_ Thinking quickly, Satoshi kicked dirt at Kasumi, causing her to go blind temporarily. In the same motion, and using the momentum, Satoshi used that same leg to do a backflip Shadow Kick, using the dark energy to cancel out the light based energy of the giant shuriken. Once he landed, he found Kasumi to still be blinded by the sand attack. Now was his chance.

Satoshi pulled his fists back, putting large amounts of shadow energy into both his fists. "SHADOW TWIN LANCE!" Thrusting his fists, he shot off a strong beam of dark energy at Kasumi.

_BOOM!_

An explosion erupted where Kasumi stood. Satoshi didn't budge from his position, peering closely into the dark mist. He needed to make sure he did sufficient damage. However, once the mist cleared, he found his answer.

"Nice try, Satoshi." Kasumi had managed to erect a barrier just before the blast. Unfortunately, it shattered under the power of the Shadow Lance. "That was pretty foolish of you, using such a powerful attack so early. You've been slacking lately, haven't you?"

"My intention wasn't to kill you. Haven't you noticed yet?" Satoshi's eyes looked worn and tired. It was clear he had used up a lot of mana.

"No intention to kill me? That's a first. You must be getting soft."

"So is your mana."

"What…?" Thinking about it, Kasumi realized Satoshi's plan. Out of emergency, she had put up a very strong barrier, though that required a ton of energy. Even with mana reduction, her mana level was probably as low as Satoshi's. "Dammit! This can't be! I should have a lot more mana than that!"

"You have good mana control, but you've forgotten that this isn't your body. Our synchronization levels aren't nearly high enough to even be near our normal levels. But this way, now we're even. No cool powers, none of your crazy attacks. Just a good ol' fashioned brawl."

Kasumi started to feel tired from the long battle. Not only that, but she was confused about an issue. Ever since the battle, she hadn't felt a hint of killing intent from Satoshi. Was he just toying with her, or did he even feel she was a challenge? The man didn't make sense. "What's going on with you? Why are you trying to act all different?"

"Act different?" Satoshi was clearly confused.

"In the old days, you wouldn't have taken it so easily. You would be doing all you can to kill me. Are you playing some kind of game?"

"A game? Hmm…something like that. It's more of a guessing game than anything combat related. You still haven't realized what was missing from this battle."

"Hmph, still trying to confuse me? Just because I'm low on mana doesn't mean you can take me lightly."

"I'm not taking you lightly. I've been taking you seriously. You and Misty seem to have this inferiority complex thing going on. Apparently, both of you think we're taking you lightly for some reason. You guys really need to stop acting so damn weird. It's not right."

"You damned cur. How dare you insult us like that?"

"Both of you are strong, very strong. It's almost an insult to us that you think we're taking you lightly. Ash found it hard to battle because Misty is a friend, as well as a girl. My reason is simple." He pointed at Kasumi, or rather, her clothes. "IT'S FREAKIN WEIRD FIGHTING YOU WITH SO LITTLE CLOTHING!!"

Kasumi sweat-dropped and look down, realizing what he meant. "…oh."

Satoshi almost fell over, astonished. "What do you mean 'oh'!? Have you no shame woman!?"

The light guardian raised an eyebrow at Satoshi. "…You prefer I fight with no clothing?"

"THAT WOULD BE EVEN WORSE!" Satoshi yelled.

"Personally, I don't care. We're all adults here. We've all seen a naked body before. I fail to see why you're getting all worked up." After some consideration, Kasumi narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Or are you some kind of closet pervert?"

"Don't put me on the same level as Takeshi! It's almost depressing!"

Kasumi sighed tiredly. "Can we PLEASE get this battle over with? I would like to resume killing you now."

Satoshi gave Kasumi a blank stare. "Seriously, you're a guardian of light. Aren't you supposed to be, you know, NOT trying to kill people and stuff?"

"This whole conversation is stupid! I'm not going to waste my last chance of fighting you like this." Kasumi started to sway her body, getting into a rhythmic pattern. "I will destroy you today, or die trying."

Satoshi held his chin thoughtfully, a smirk on his face. "You know, you would make a great belly dancer. I'm sure you would get huge tips. Heh, I'll bet money Takeshi would be your first customer for a lap dance."

"SHUT UP AND DIE!" Kasumi began charging at Satoshi, closing in quickly.

"Tch, the Hyoushi Renge. I hate that move." Satoshi stepped back as Kasumi threw a palm strike at him. He had to avoid getting hit if he ever wanted to stay mobile. Kasumi spun on her heel, preparing to strike Satoshi's leg with her fingers. Luckily, Satoshi jumped in time to avoid getting his leg paralyzed. There was no chance he would be able to catch her with an attack without getting paralyzed, and thus lose the battle. How could he break through her Hyoushi Renge without his special attacks?

"Just give up and let me destroy you! You can't beat this technique!" Kasumi continued her rhythmic spins and graceful strikes, getting closer and closer to landing the critical hits.

'_Geez what I pain. That Kasumi and her freakin sexy dance technique. Hmm…sexy dance, huh?'_ Rather than chastise himself for slipping on the sexy statement, an old memory returned to him. It was a move he developed that counter many fighting techniques, especially the Hyoushi Renge. "HOLD IT!"

Immediately, Kasumi stopped in her tracks, perplexed with Satoshi's command. Safe to say, she was perturbed. "We're in the middle of a fight! You can't just stop the battle like that!"

"But you did, didn't you? Besides, this is important." Kasumi grew silent as Satoshi continued. "Since SOMEONE is in the dancing mood, we might as well set it off correctly. You're not the only one who can throw down sexy moves!"

"Err…you think my moves are sexy?" Kasumi asked, a little surprised.

Catching himself, Satoshi fumbled over his words. "Ah…what I meant was…ah, just forget. That's not important! Hey you, woman!" Satoshi pointed at Violet.

"Huh? You mean me?" Violet asked, pointing to herself.

"Yeah, you. Put on something a little upbeat for us." Satoshi demanded.

Kasumi's shoulders slumped, giving Satoshi a tired, yet odd glance. "You've got to be kidding me…"

"Let's see what we got…" Violet pulled out a remote control from her pocket. Pressing some buttons, a different song started to play.

(Bomb a head! – Tenjou Tenge)

Satoshi's foot started to tap to the music, getting the feel to the rhythm. This was his kind of music. "Now that's what I'm talking about." His body gradually started moving, his feet and arms beginning to do complex dance movements.

"What the hell kind of dance is that? It has no grace." Frustrated with Satoshi's lack of seriousness, she ran forward to enter close-ranged combat.

"Hmph, don't underestimate the power of MY special combat technique: The Satoshi Renge!" Satoshi leaned back to dodge the paralyzing strike of Kasumi's finger tips.

"TAKE THIS!" Kasumi began a rain of strikes in rapid succession, making spins and twirls to dodge attacks while attack. Satoshi was moving back and dodging the attacks with ease, not to mention while breakdancing in the process. Once the darkness guardian discovered an opening, he performed a low sweep with his leg to trip Kasumi. Seeing this, she did a side flip to avoid getting tripped. As soon as she landed, noticed Satoshi going even lower, holding himself up with his hands. This allowed him to spin continuously like a top, his legs stretched out. "What the hell…!? Dammit!" She cursed, forced to jump back from the spinning Satoshi.

"You're not getting away that easily!" Using swift reflexes and control of momentum, Satoshi brought his legs up, doing a handstand. He flipped towards Kasumi until he was close enough to attack. Still on his hands, he used his feet to throw a quick series of attacks, making Kasumi parry and block the blows. Getting annoyed, she blocked a kick and threw one of her on at Satoshi. Satoshi dropped himself to the ground to avoid getting kicked and rolled back to his feet. With his back facing Kasumi, Satoshi started stepping towards her, attacking with both his feet and arms at random intervals.

'_I don't believe this! My Hyoushi Renge is being countered by…this!?'_ The so-called 'Satoshi Renge' was both unpredictable and swift, disabling her ability to use Satoshi's flow of attacks against him. So far, she had been able to avoid getting hit, but Satoshi was just as hard to attack, if not more difficult.

Satoshi jumped at her while still attacking backwards, making it so he leaned on her. Caught by surprised, Kasumi caught him so they both wouldn't fall. "Heh, if I didn't no any better, I would say you're enjoying this."

"Go to hell!" Kasumi pushed him off, but in doing this made an opponent. Satoshi spun his body around and made an uppercut to her chin. The attack stunned her and caused her to stumble back, writhing in pain.

"Awesome this is my favorite part!" Breaking from their dance of death, Satoshi started dancing to the rest of the song, giving Kasumi the time to recover.

'_What does this fool think he's doing? How could he possibly be serious about this?'_ Kasumi thought about a comment Satoshi made, speaking of something missing from the battle. Was he buying time until she understood? Did that mean he didn't want to kill her? Satoshi was never someone she could completely understand. Of everyone she had ever meant, he was the hardest person to defeat, not to mention the most misunderstood. But no matter what, before she loses this chance, she would have her revenge.

Satoshi stopped his breakdancing to see Kasumi staring at him coldly. Standing straight, he closed his eyes, relaxing his body. His time was almost up before Ash's consciousness reawakened. He really hoped to stay longer, but he's exhausted too much energy as it is. _'Maybe it's time. I've had my fun.'_

Now was Kasumi's chance. With Satoshi's guard down, this was the perfect time to strike. "DIE SATOSHI!" She ran at the Satoshi with her hand pulled back and straightened back, hoping to make it a final strike. _'This is it! There's no mistaking it! Once I attack, it will be over! I'll have my revenge and be rid of Satoshi for good!'_ Her blow was about to connect when Satoshi did something unexpected.

"Purpose." Satoshi said, just as the attack was about to pierce his heart.

Kasumi stopped, trying to understand what Satoshi said. "Wh…what?"

"The answer is purpose. That is what this fight lacks."

Kasumi's hand started trembling slightly. "No purpose…? No, you're wrong! We hate each other! We betrayed each other! We—"

Satoshi opened his eyes, staring down Kasumi. "Right, and what would be gain in the end? Tell me, Kasumi, what would make you smile at the end of the day that's worth killing me?"

The two stared each other down, silence enveloping them. Kasumi found herself lost for an answer. What would she gain from killing Satoshi? Was it truly out of hate and spite? She found her resolve shaken by his very words.

"We left our purpose for fighting along with our bodies 5000 years ago. Times have changed, Kasumi, no matter how much we don't want to admit it. I don't even care about the past anymore. I'm more interested to see what this new era has to offer. I'm not going to ask for forgiveness, and I'm sure as hell not going to apologize for anything, and neither should you. However, I will say this." Satoshi grabbed Kasumi's wrist and pulled her forward. Kasumi gasped as she was suddenly pulled into an embrace, her head lying on his chest. Satoshi stroked her hair was resting his cheek against her head. "You and Misty are kick ass, we get it."

And thus Kasumi's resolve for vengeance…was shattered.

"You…idiot…" Kasumi sniffed, her arms hanging limp. She barely had the strength to stand, let alone continue fighting. "Stop trying to act all cool. You're supposed to be my mortal enemy."

"I'm fine with that, but do it because your beef is with me, not some crap that happened years ago. Screw the past." Satoshi couldn't help but smile to himself. He had to thank Ash for helping him realizing what was so obvious. Besides, he would have more fun this way.

Not wanting to get too comfortable, Kasumi pushed herself off of Satoshi. Turning around, she crossed her arms and gave off a dignified huff. "I'll let you live this time, but not because of your lame speech. I'm merely keeping a promise I made to Misty about not killing Ash."

Satoshi sweat-dropped, giving Kasumi an odd glance. "Um…last I checked, that's exactly what you were trying to do."

Catching herself, Kasumi found herself in a tight spot. "W-well…it's not like I can just say I'm going to almost kill you. You would've gotten the hint right away."

"Throwing frickin laser beams at me kinda qualifies as attempted murder."

"Well, you're still alive aren't you?"

"Does the word 'ghost' mean anything to you? I'm about as alive as a rock."

"Hmph, regardless, I'll let you off easy for now."

"Right, because we all know laser burns and pierced flesh can EASILY be ignored." Satoshi shot sarcastically.

"Yeah, yeah." Facing Satoshi, she smiled weakly. "Anyway, you got a point. Next time we fight, it will be for better—"

_RIP!_

"Ack….!" Satoshi paled in horror, slowly looking at the source of the sound.

Misty's bra snapped.

"Ah….ah…!" Satoshi was stunned, staring at Kasumi's exposed chest. His faced turned red at the sight.

"Well…this is kind of awkward." Kasumi laughed nervously, scratching her head. "Uh…Satoshi? You can pick up your jaw now."

"Ack! Uh, well, you see…" Finding himself unable to make a comeback, Satoshi took off Ash's shirt and handed it to Kasumi, turning his face away. "Just take the damn shirt. Ash would have a fit if you walked around in that."

Kasumi shot Satoshi a flat gaze. "…You've never seen a naked girl's body before, have you?"

"O-o-of course! P-plenty of times!" Satoshi grunted, still embarrassed.

"Well, isn't that something? The mighty Kurozian guardian falls to naked girls. Wish I knew that sooner, I might've had an army of naked women chase you down."

Satoshi tossed Kasumi an angry glare and flung the shirt at her, his whole body turning red at the thought. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!?!"

Kasumi chuckled to herself, putting on the shirt. "You like the idea and you know it. Pervert."

"GO TO HELL!" Satoshi yelled.

Glancing back, Kasumi noticed Violet, wearing an astonished face. Noticing that her microphone fell from her hands, she must've been in shock. "I almost forgot, we still have a fight to finish. Oh well, since you tried SO hard to end the fight, I'll let you have the win."

"I didn't try THAT hard…" Satoshi mumbled to himself.

"Hmm…but we really should do something for the audience, given it would be lame to just give up and walk away."

Curious, Satoshi raised an eyebrow. "That's true. But what should we do? I doubt we have the strength to continue fighting."

"Don't worry, I have an idea." Suddenly, she turned to face Violet, dramatically placing the back of her wrist onto her forehead. "Oh no. The fact I was naked in front of hundreds of people has shocked me terribly. So much that I will now faint." She spoke in monotone, dropping to the ground.

Satoshi face-faulted, shocked with Kasumi's poor acting skills. "THAT'S THE MOST RETARDED THING I'VE EVER SEEN!!" He roared. Shrugging, he released a deep sigh. "I give up. I'll never understand that insane woman."

Violet approached the fallen female, checking on her condition. She sighed when she realized 'Misty' had just fainted, the Spirit-sync being cancelled. After counting to ten, she walked over to Satoshi, who had his eyes closed, his skin and hair returning to their normal shade, and raised his hand into the air. "The winner of this round by knock out is ASH KETCHUM!" She called into the microphone.

The boy's eyes opened, feeling worn out. "Ugh…what happened? And why does my body hurt so much?" Ash wondered. He blinked after realizing a few things. W-w-w-what is going on? Why is Misty unconscious and beaten up? Also, why the heck is she wearing my shirt!?"

"Huh? You just gave it to her though." Violet informed.

'That's strange. Did something happen while I was unconscious?' Ash wondered to himself. "Uh…did I win?"

Violet nodded. "Yep. You're now in the finals. Your opponent will be none other than Soma."

"I see…" Ash had finally done it. He had reached his final opponent of the tournament. Though he didn't know how Misty was defeated, he certainly knew one thing.

The next fight will be the toughest battle he ever had.

* * *

Hopefully, you've enjoyed the chapter as much as I did. I've been dying to write the next few chapters as well as finish this tournament arc. So what I've been thinking of doing is just going straight with this fic until I've reached the end of this tournament arc. Afterwards, I'll do the same for some of the other stories. This way, I won't have to break my flow and end up with a writer's block. (However, if I feel like continuing another story 'prematurely', I probably will). See you next time, and drop a review if you get the chance. I'm hoping you like where this tournament arc is going so far.

P.S. I do not own any of the songs that have been or will be used for this fic.


	18. Calm before the firestorm

_**Chapter 18 – Calm before the firestorm**_

Cerulean Hospital – Waiting Room

Ash was disgruntled and puzzled. The doctors told him to wait in the waiting area while Brock and Misty were in the infirmary, recovering from their battles. Though Misty arrived later than Brock, Brock's wounds were more serious, meaning his would take a good deal longer. Satoshi hadn't appeared in his ghost form ever since he awakened to consciousness, leaving Ash to draw his own conclusions. He tried to remember the details of his match with Misty, but he didn't remember a single thing. It scared him that possibly, he might've caused such harm to Misty. Pikachu had also been quiet, contemplating on whether to explain to his friend what had transpired.

The waiting room was nothing more than a small, white room with chairs sitting against the walls. Ash was the only person in the waiting room, which made for a quiet afternoon. He folded his hands against his mouth, resting his elbows on his legs. There was only one person, as Ash soon realized, that could help answer his questions. "Hey, Pikachu…" He had a guess as to what happened, though he wished otherwise. "Did I…hurt Misty like that? Was I the one who injured her so badly?" His voice was calm, but grief was evident in his tone.

"Pika…" Pikachu shook his head.

Closing his eyes, Ash released a sigh. "Was it…Satoshi?"

Pikachu had a bad feeling about that question, but he wouldn't lie. The truth had to be told. "…Pi." The mouse nodded sadly.

"…I should've known." Ash grew silent, doing some serious thinking. It made perfect sense, given that Satoshi had a strong urge to fight, even kill Kasumi. He was starting to wonder if it was a mistake to try and trust the Kurozian spirit. Just when he thought Satoshi had the potential to be a good guy, the spirit takes over Ash by force and injures one of his best friends. There was no way he would forgive him for doing such a horrid thing. "…It's my fault. Brock and Misty got hurt just because I wasn't strong or smart enough to do better..."

"Seriously Ash. Self-pity just doesn't suit you."

"That voice…!" Ash glanced at the door way to see Wes and Rui walk in.

"Hey, glad to see you're alright. Or rather…just alive." Wes winced when he saw the bandages wrapping Ash's body. His chest, stomach, shoulder and arms were completely covered and showed red spots on several places. "Man, shouldn't you be in one of those rooms rather than the waiting room?"

Ash shook his head. "I told them I want to see that Misty and Brock is okay first. I got patched up a bit beforehand, so I'll be fine as long as they're alright. Never mind me, what about you and Brendan?"

"I'm doing fine, no problems there, but my brother…" Wes placed his hands into his pockets, wearing a forlorn expression. "That creepy psychic did something nasty to him. He keeps thrashing in his sleep, like he was having some kind of nightmare. He hasn't woken up yet, but I hope he does soon. We got things to do."

Rui's eyes focused on Ash, sensing his despair. "What's wrong Ash? You don't look well."

"Did you guys see my last fight?"

"Yeah, you were awesome!" Wes praised greatly, pumping his fist in the air. "The way you totally owned Misty was cool! You guys were like ZAM and SLASH and SHAZAM! There was some great fanservice too! Uh…Ash, are you alright?" Wes sweat-dropped as Ash sunk even further into his depression.

"Um…Wes? I think that IS Ash's problem." Rui whispered.

"You might have a point…" Wes decided to approach Ash differently. "Well hey, if it helps, you only beat her a little less than half to death."

"Wes, you're not helping." Ash informed, gravity seemingly getting heavier by the minute.

Wes smiled apologetically. "Sorry about that."

Rui had a thoughtful look on her face as she took a seat next to Ash. "Ash…that wasn't you that was fighting Misty, wasn't it?" Ash said nothing, but shook his head. "Hmm…then my guess was right. It was the spirit you, Misty and Brock have been carrying with you."

"You know about those?" Ash asked, surprised.

Rui nodded. "I have the ability to see things other people can't. But that's beside the point; do you remember your battle with Misty at all?"

"Only the first part. I don't know what happened after I was knocked unconscious."

"Alright. I'll recap. What happened was…" Rui began retelling the battle of Satoshi and Kasumi…

Cerulean City Gym – Soma's Office

"Damn it all…" Soma snarled, cleaning his sword at his desk. Using a reddened white washcloth, he tried hard to clear his mind of frustration, but to no avail. The more he thought about his last match, the greater his anger grew. To be showed up by kids he had crushed easily a week was both surprising and embarrassing.

Zansei, leaning against the door to the office, knew how he felt, but also knew Soma was taking the situation too seriously. "Don't beat yourself up over it, Soma. You shouldn't underestimate the power of humans in this age."

"I must be slacking very badly. There's no other explanation. I'd taken these kids to be chumps, but that's twice I've almost be defeated. It's an insult for a Vizier to be trounced so easily."

"It's an even bigger insult to lose because you didn't take your opponents seriously." The brown haired boy stated.

"Well, I'm not going to make that mistake again. For Ash to get this far, he will be a great challenge. No matter the circumstances, I can't lose."

Zansei sighed. Somehow, he could guess Soma's motivation. "…This is about what happened back at Mt. Skyterror, huh?"

Soma gritted his teeth at the memory, his anger rising. "I wasn't just defeated, I was humiliated! I lost everything that day. Until I get strong enough to beat that person, I can't lose." His grip on his sword tightened. "…Even if it means I must use _that_."

Zansei's eyes widened a bit, fearing what Soma had in mind. "Have you lost your mind, Soma? Using something like that in such a public setting? Our leader won't like it."

"To hell with him!" The tiger vizier bellowed. "Where was he when we needed him most? He just does what he wants rather than support our mission as Viziers! I should've been leader of the Viziers; not that fool! But don't worry. Once this tournament is done, I'll continue my so-called mission to find the others."

"I hope everyone's doing well. Especially my rival." Zansei grinned at the thought.

The mood lightening slightly, Soma crossed his arms, tossing his ally an inquisitive look. "Hmm…you still have that rivalry going on with Zero?"

"Of course!" The boy slapped his fist together. "I won't rest until we decide who the fastest man in the world is. My title as Ground Vizier is at stake."

"So it's sky versus earth, huh? Talk about a classic." Standing up, Soma started for the door, wielding his gigantic blade.

Zansei moved out of the way, curious on his friend's intentions. "Where are you going?" Soma flashed a brown book at Zansei. The title was in another language, and the book was very worn and old. "Kaijudo summoning? You don't mean…"

"That's right. I'm going to enlist some friends for tomorrow's battle. I'll be back soon, so just sit tight." With that, Soma stepped out of the room. Once past the door, his eyes narrowed, darkening with seriousness. "Ash Ketchum…I will not lose…even if it means I have to take your life..."

Cerulean Hospital – Waiting Room

"Are you serious!?" Ash shot up from his seat, stunned with the story he heard. "Misty was exposed to the world!?"

"Yeah! Hehehe, it was cool!" Wes grinned widely. He was definitely going to sleep well tonight. 'Too bad there wasn't much to see. I've seen walls that were more interesting…'

"…And I actually MISSED this!? That's just not fair!" Ash grumbled, crossing his arms angrily. Another realization suddenly hit him, causing him to redden. "My spirit actually HUGGED her!?"

"Yeah. Man, you should've seen everyone's face. I've never seen such a mix of surprise and confusion in all my life."

"Makes sense I guess. But still, I don't like that idea that I actually injured Misty. It makes me uncomfortable to think I'm carrying something that dangerous."

"Ash…" Rui placed a comforting hand on Ash's shoulder. "I do not know your spirit very well, so I'm not going to make any hasty assumptions. However, I feel it might be better to talk to your spirit about what happened."

"…There's nothing to talk about. He used my body without my permission and went against my wishes…" Ash's eyes narrowed at his hand, which was clenched tightly, "If using his power means that I have to hurt my friends…then I'll never use it again."

Rui closed her eyes, knowing how Ash felt. She would feel the same way if she was in his position. "That's your decision. What you do with that power is up to you. However, I still think you should talk to him."

"Why? Why should I talk to the person who wouldn't hesitate to hurt my friends?"

"Because even though he's living in your body, you did use his power, right?" Ash paused for a moment, then nodded, slightly understanding her point. "When you share abilities, you both accept responsibility. I'm not condoning what your friend has done, but wouldn't you agree it's unfair to use your friend's power and he gets nothing in return? Being a mere soul is a sad existence. Stripped from the world of the living and slapped into a body which is the only means of being anywhere near alive…it's a harsh reality. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy…" Rui stood up, starting for the door with Wes. "Sharing is one thing, using someone as a tool is another. You're a good guy Ash. I know you wouldn't knowingly use someone. Even if you're angry at someone, it's still best to at least see their side of the story. Good luck in your match."

"Where are you guys going?"

"We got other business to attend to. We're picking up Brendan and high tailing it out of here. I'll catch you later." Wes gave a small wave and left with Rui.

Ash leaned back, getting a lot of food for thought. He didn't feel like talking to the Kurozian, still angered by the spirit's actions. Though upset, he couldn't help but think about the story he was told. What reason could Satoshi hug Kasumi? That was the only issue that really confused him, considering how much the two spirits hated each other. Maybe he really should talk to Satoshi…

"Um…Ash Ketchum?" A pink haired nurse called from one of the doors.

Ash looked up, giving his attention to the nurse. "Yes, Nurse Joy?"

"Your friend Brock is awake. You can visit him right now if you would like."

"I will. Thanks." Ash stood up, wincing as some of his wounds started to ache. "By the way, is there any word on Misty?"

"She is still being treated. I'm sorry, but it'll take just a little while longer. She should be fine after treatment. Brock's room is in 114B. Down the hall."

"Alright. Thanks again." Ash walked towards the room specified by the nurse. It wasn't a very far walk. In a few minutes, Ash was right in front of room 114B. Given the massive injuries sustained in his battle against Soma, Brock was probably in very poor shape. Ash dreaded to think how his best friend was doing. Opening the door, he raised an eyebrow at the sight before him.

"Come on Nurse Joy…! You're a nurse. Isn't healing a part of your duty?" Brock begged pleadingly. His chest and torso was completely wrapped in bandages. There were additional bandages and patches placed around his arms, legs, and forehead, though loosened due to Brock's movements. He was on his knees, begging the nurse to perform her 'duties'.

The Nurse Joy tossed Brock a disbelieving gaze. "…Mr. Slate. Last time I checked, sexual healing isn't a part of my job description. Now if you'll excuse me, I will be going." The woman walked hastily out of the room, avoiding Brock's advances.

"Hehehe, you never change Brock." Ash chuckled.

"Ash! Hey man, glad to see you're…" Brock stopped his sentence, raising an eyebrow. "Uh…is there a reason you don't have a shirt on?"

Ash rubbed the back of his neck, his cheeks burning brightly. "Well…this and that happened…and Misty kinda has my shirt. I tried to get it off, but Violet was really stubborn about letting me get it back. I can definitely see why…"

"Err…o…kay. But anyway, how did it go with your battle?"

"I won. I face Soma tomorrow."

Brock frowned slightly. "You don't sound very happy about it."

"I was told what happened since I was unconscious for half my fight. Satoshi took over my body and fought Misty against my will. He also hurt her pretty badly."

"Yeesh, talk about bad news. Looks like you got beat up pretty badly too."

"Yeah. I think Kasumi possessed Misty and fought Satoshi as well."

"_Hmm…so those two finally got the meeting they've been dying for._" Takeshi spoke, rising from Brock in his ghost form. "_Well, it's a good sign that you and Misty are still alive. But if that's the case, that must mean something happened between them._"

Ash thought about it, almost forgetting to explain one extra detail. "Did I forget to mention they actually hugged?"

"_They WHAT!?_" Both Brock and Takeshi gasped.

"That's the last thing I would ever expect them to do. What the heck could've happened that would make them do that?" Brock wondered.

Takeshi had a clear idea, and smiled. It was shockingly clear what had transpired. "_That's good to hear. This means they finally came to terms and realized how silly their hatred is now._"

"Does that mean they'll actually stop fighting each other?" Ash asked.

"_Now THAT'S another story. Fighting I'm sure they'll do. Just the killing part is out of the way. Speaking of violence, I wonder what our friendly ghost is doing_."

Ash shrugged. "Who knows? He's probably hiding somewhere in my head."

"_Why don't we call him out? Hey, Satoshi! Quit hiding and come outta there!_" Takeshi called out. He frowned when there was no response. "_Looks like I'll have to take out the big guns._" Taking a dramatic breath, he called out again. "_Hey, Fluffy-kun, we want our team mascot back!_"

And thus, everyone's favorite warrior emerged. Though he wasn't in the best of moods…

"_You bastard! You shall die a thousand deaths for that comment!_" Satoshi howled, glaring daggers at the chuckling Takeshi.

"Fluffy-kun? I definitely gotta hear this one!" Brock mused.

"_Well, you see, what happened was…_" Takeshi began.

"_HELL NO! Go any further and I'll make sure the fires of hell swallow your soul!_" Satoshi yelled.

"_Fine, fine. But anyway, according to what Ash heard, looks like things have finally patched up between you and Kasumi._"

"_Hmph, nothing's really changed. I only stated what was clear. We're not gonna get buddy-buddy or anything, so don't get your hopes up._" Satoshi glanced at Ash, noticing the look on his face. It had a hint of anger in it, but more of a serious nature. The boy's slightly narrowed eyes were targeting him. "What's with you?"

"Satoshi. Why did you hurt Misty?" Ash asked calmly, retaining his anger.

Satoshi was prepared for this and knew just how to answer. "_What are you, stupid? If I didn't do anything, you would've lost more than just that match._"

"I don't care about that! I never asked for you to fight my battle! Why did you do it!?"

"_Don't be so immature about it. All cuts and bruises heal. You would've lost Misty AND the match if I didn't intervene!_"

"That still doesn't give you the right to hurt my friends!"

"_Better hurt than dead when they face Soma! What, sending your friend to her death is supposed to be cool?_"

"Just because I wasn't trying to fight didn't mean I was going to lose!"

"_Not fighting equals losing! This is a tournament, not a playground! Grow up!_"

Both Brock and Takeshi watched the two bicker back and forth, unsure of what should be done or said. They made very good points, making it difficult to say who was wrong or right. It was clear that they both wanted the same thing, but went about it the opposite way desired.

It was truly ironic.

"Hey guys, settle down. Especially you, Ash." Brock chided.

"Why should I calm down? Give me one good reason why."

"Because some people can't see the other half of the conversation." Brock pointed at the door.

"What do you mean by…oh…" Ash faced the opened door, where several people stared at him like a madman streaking in winter.

A Nurse Joy among the audience sweat-dropped. "Um…do you require medical attention…?"

Ash flushed considerably, shifting uncomfortably in his shoes. "Um, no, sorry. Just having some slight…issues…"

"_Your head IS an issues, you dolt._" Satoshi sniped. Ash growled under his breath, but chose not to embarrass himself further. Ash waited until the crowd was cleared before closing the door. "_Hmph, this argument is pointless. If you don't want my help, that's fine with me. You can get yourself and your cheerleaders killed for all I care! Fare-freaking-well!_" And with that, Satoshi disappeared, returning to his mental chamber within Ash's mind.

"I certainly don't plan to, nor care." Ash grunted, fuming.

"_Man, you guys fight almost as bad as with Misty and Kasumi._" Takeshi whistled in astonishment. "_From what I've heard, things happened here and there, and the end result wasn't exactly something desired by both parties. Satoshi on one hand had the right idea of thinking ahead to save Misty from Soma. However, it was still wrong that he went against your wishes and injured Misty in the process. It's hard to say who really is in the wrong since you both had very good points. In any case, what's done is done. Instead of debating who is wrong, you should probably start preparing yourself for the finals._"

"Ash, Takeshi has a point. Just concentrate on tomorrow for now. Sounds to me like both of you need to cool off before trying to come to terms with each other." Brock suggested.

"…Fine. Take care of yourself, Brock." Ash waved goodbye as he left the room, his face still contorted with irritation.

Brock sighed, feeling Ash's anger. "…It's sad when you think about it."

Takeshi nodded slowly. "_I agree. They've been together the longest of all three of us, yet they have zero trust in each other. It must be hard for those two…_"

Cerulean City Gym

It was late into the evening, close to midnight. Out of the hallway bathroom emerged Ash, dressed in yellow shorts and a light blue t-shirt. After training with his Pokémon, a good shower was enough to soothe his aching, dirty body from his tough training regime. Unlike usual, Pikachu was resting inside his room instead of following him, worn out from training with Ash. This left the trainer alone to walk the dark halls. "This place gets pretty creepy when it's this late." Ash thought aloud, walking the halls of the Waterflower gym.

Walking towards his room, he released a deep sigh. He just couldn't wrap his head completely on everything that had happened. Though Misty was badly wounded, his wounds were close to fatal. In a way, it showed that Satoshi might've held back, given what he understood about his abilities so far. Even he was amazed at how his body was starting to heal quicker than expected, especially during nighttime. He felt his bandaged wounds, surprised with his high healing rate. The holes in his shoulders were already sealed, leaving only a scar of what it once was. "Is this…the result of using Satoshi's power?"

"More or less." Zansei answered, leaning on a wall behind Ash.

"AH!" Ash yelped, turning swiftly and jumping away from the Ground Vizier. "D-don't do that! It's creepy!"

"No need to act all jumpy. It's just me, your friendly Vizier, Zansei."

"A Vizier…? You mean you're one of those Vizier guys like Soma?"

Zansei flashed a small grin at Ash. "Yep. You can say we're buddies."

"Buddies, huh? What are you doing here then? Shouldn't you be helping Soma with tomorrow's finals besides hanging around and trying to scare the living heck out of me?"

"For one thing, that was just too much fun not to do." Ash narrowed his eyes irritably at this, but Zansei ignored it. "And yes, I should be helping out Soma. That's why I'm here."

"…Eh?" Clearly, Ash was dumbfounded with the conflicting logic.

Zansei sighed. "Don't burst a brain cell over it. Simply, by helping you, I'm helping Soma. I'm mainly here just to give you a warning about tomorrow's final match. Unlike your battle in the Viridian Forest, Soma will be facing you with full power, no holding back. There's a good chance that you will die in the upcoming battle. Something else you should be concerned with is if Soma, for lack of a better word, releases the beast on you. If you see him starting to transform, run. There is NO chance of victory at that point. If you ever wish to beat Soma, beat him before he transforms."

"He transforms? That sounds interesting."

"Call it what you like. Once he release his secondary form, your hopes of winning will be zero. He becomes an engine of destruction. He had leveled cities alone in his transformed state."

"Thanks for the advice, but I don't plan on quitting this tournament. I didn't spend the last week training constantly just to quit when things get rough. Transformed or not, I'm going to beat Soma."

Zansei closed his eyes for a moment before nodding to himself. "I like that. Looks like he called right after all. With confidence like that, you might stand a chance. Just don't let it go to your head and get yourself killed." Getting off the wall, he turned to leave. "Well, I don't want to overstay my welcome, so I shall get going—"

"Hey, wait a second." Ash halted. Zansei didn't move, but was listening. "Something tells me Misty's sisters didn't come up with this whole tournament scheme themselves. Tell me, who really started this whole tournament mess? And how does telling me all this information about Soma actually help him?"

"As for the first question, it's a secret. You'll have to ask Soma that yourself. And for the second question, I'm doing Soma a favor by helping one of his best challengers to date become a little more challenging. It wouldn't be good if you got killed too early, you still have room for improvement. That will help him overcome his ultimate goal."

"His ultimate goal?"

"That's right. His ultimate goal is to defeat a certain person, a warrior who defeated him and left him with nothing. The person he used to call his best friend is now is arch nemesis…" Zansei began disappearing from the shadows, his voice echoing the hallway. "That person…is one of Fazura's greatest warriors: Shinra of the Dragons…"

"A rival named Shinra…" Ash started walking towards his bedroom, thinking over Zansei's words. "If it is what I think it is…then what I have to watch out for is not his powerful strength or second form, but his will to win…"

In that moment, things were beginning to make sense.

Cerulean City – Battlefield

With the next day, the two finalists were in position, fully prepared and ready to fight. They stood approximately 20 feet apart, staring each other down. Soma glared dangerously at Ash through his glasses, recognizing him as a real threat. "Things aren't going to be as nice as back in the forest. I'm going to break you into bite-sized pieces, boy!"

Ash smirked, quick to retort. "I'm a lot stronger than I was back then, and I'll prove it by defeating you."

"Hmph, cocky punk…" Standing straight, Soma flexed his hands, itching to begin the battle.

Once again, Violet got into position between the fighters, ready to get it started. "Ladies and gentlemen! This is the moment you've all been waiting for! The ultimate battle between our two finalist is about to begin! Who will take home the gold and fame? Will it be the blazing brawler Soma? Or, will it be the ultimate underdog, Ash? It will be decided with this fight! Fighters, are you ready?" The said people nodded, not breaking their gaze in the slightest. "Okay! SOMA HOMURA versus ASH KETCHUM! Final Round!" At this point, Violet made sure to distance herself greatly, avoiding what was about to be an epic battle.

"Fighters ready….? FIGHT!"

* * *

Trust me, the fun's just getting started! Stay tuned for the epic battle soon to approach! Who will win? Find out next time on Legend of Final Destiny: Fateful Gathering! Reviews are much appreciated and will be noted! Thank you for reading! 


	19. Blazing Brawl

**_Chapter 19 – Blazing Brawl_**

Cerulean City – Battlefield

"Fighters ready…? FIGHT!"

(Knight of Fire – Xenogears)

Not wasting a precious second, Soma gripped the sword on his back and swung it into the ground Ash. "Flare Blade!" A trail of fire erupted from the blade and traveled along the ground, speeding at the trainer. Using swift reflexes, Ash jumped and flipped his body over the wave of fire blazing at him. Once he landed on his hands and feet in a crouch he quickly sprinted at the fire Vizier. "Attacking me head on, huh? If he wants a death wish, he's got it!" Kneeling forward, Soma performed a huge, full body horizontal swing.

To his surprise, Ash disappeared.

"What!?" Soma scanned left and right in alarm.

"Missed me?" Ash joked, catching Soma's attention. Somehow, Ash hitched a ride on his sword and was currently crouched on the flat side of it. Before Soma could react, Ash pressed his palms onto the sword and yelled. "Thundershock!"

_BZZT!_

Shocked by the jolt, Soma dropped his sword and jumped back. That was something he wasn't prepared for. _'Did he just use a lightning attack? When did he switch from shadow to thunder!_?' His attack strength dropped by drastic proportions, forcing him to use his fist. Namely, his Mana Bracer.

"You liked that, huh? There's plenty more where that came from!" Clapping his hands together, a large spark emanated from his palms.

"Interesting. I think I'll take you up on that!" Soma stampeded quickly, planning to clobber Ash. He swung his fist down at Ash, which the boy narrowly dodged by sidestepping. While his fist hit the ground, Ash placed a hand on Soma's arm as support and lifted himself up and attempted to kick Soma's face. Unfortunately for Ash, Soma caught his leg with his free hand. With a toss, Ash was sent flying across the battlefield, struggling to recover. Though he ended up tumbling along the earth, the trainer managed to get solid footing again. "Gun Flare!" Opening the bracer's hatches, Soma shot a torrent of bullets at Ash, each one exploding on contact.

When Ash was visible again, he was seen holding his palms out in front of him, guarding from the fireball barrages. Thanks to the special material on his gloves, it reduced the impact greatly, barely causing damage. Ash couldn't rest yet, because Soma was relentless in his assault, already rushing him. It wasn't a very fast swarm of punches, but each blow would most likely break bones if Ash wasn't careful. One of the swings Ash blocked with his hands, the force causing him to slide back. Soma cursed his luck when he realized his mistake. "Thundershock!"

_BZZT!_

"Gah!" Soma pulled his fist back, but in his rush, slipped his hand out to the Mana Bracer. _'Ugh, that was careless. This brat is as tricky as Brock, perhaps even worse.' _He never did like electric shocks, and he certainly didn't favor his equipment being used as a lightning rod.

Holding the Mana Bracer in his hand, Ash gasped, holding it with both hands. "What the heck…! This thing is _heavy_! How on earth did Brock even move his arm with this thing equipped?" It took a lot of strain for Ash to toss it behind himself, the metal gauntlet landing with a heavy thud.

Grasping onto his other gauntlet, Soma groaned angrily. It annoyed him how Ash was slowly disabling his equipment, using his powerful tools as a source of weakness. "Tch, what a nuisance." Seeing his gauntlet was only being a hindrance, Soma unequipped his other gauntlet, tossing it over Ash's head and next to the other gauntlet.

Ash slid his foot back, his hand resting on his Pokébelt. _'Now that his weapons are gone, I think it's safe to bring out my team.'_ Now the real part of Ash's plan was about to begin as he started summoning his Pokémon. "Grovyle, Snorlax, Totodile, Noctowl, let's go!" Out of the Pokéballs arrived his reinforcements, ready and willing to fight. Soma grimaced as he remembered battling one of those Pokémon and watched them move about the area to surround the Vizier, blocking off his chance to escape. Noctowl and Totodile were on one side, while Snorlax was on the other. Groyvle was behind Soma, and in front, was Ash.

This battle was quickly going downhill.

"Toto…DILE!" The tiny blue alligator Pokémon spat a volley of Water Gun shots at Soma, the tiger humanoid blocking the attack.

To Soma's surprise, the Water Gun blast was pushing him back. It didn't help that Soma's natural element was weak against water. Pushing through the high pressured water attack, Soma was about to strike down Totodile when Noctowl flew by Soma's face, striking him with a Wing Attack. This threw Soma off, once again getting pushed back by the Water Gun. With the constant pressure of the attack, Soma's breathing was effectively cut off, lowering his overall strength at the moment. If he didn't move soon, he would run out of air. It didn't help that Noctowl was taking repetitive swings at him either.

In a desperate evasion move, Soma ducked the sixth Wing Attack from Noctowl and rolled to the side, getting out of the Water Gun attack. Just as he regained his footing, he noticed Grovyle running at his side. Soma had to keep pivoting his body to the side while backing up, trying to avoid Grovyle's Leaf Blade attacks. After a eight attempt at slashing Soma, the reptile took a feral leap and managed a heavy slash on his chest. With a fist engulfed in flames, Soma struck back at Grovyle with a fiery punch to the face, knocking the Grass-type back. Looking down, Soma noticed a large shadow looming over him.

It was Snorlax.

"Snor…!" Soma glanced back to see Snorlax raising his fist, preparing a Mega Punch attack. He was about to move when he turned around to see Ash up close to him.

_WHAM!_

Ash launched an upward kick to his chin, powerful enough to lift Soma into the air. Unfortunately, this stunned the vizier long enough for Snorlax to finish the combo. "LAX!"

_SMASH!_

The attack slammed into Soma's back, sending him flying forward. Though he crashed into the ground roughly, he rolled back onto his feet almost immediately. That attack was incredibly painful, and worse yet, unpredictable. Ash was thinking steps ahead while Soma was stuck trying to catch up.

He had to start thinking smart for this battle. Something he had rare chance to do before he started this tournament.

Soma analyzed his situation. He was still surrounded, but it was looser than previously. Everyone but Totodile and Noctowl were in front of him, as the remaining two were behind him. His chance to break through was slim, but it would give him time to implement his plan. Conjuring fire mana on his hands, Soma kept his eyes on as many of his opponents as he could.

Suddenly, he heard a caw from Noctowl, signaling the Pokémon's Wing Attack. Instead of dodging it, he swung his hand at Noctowl, just barely grazing the owl. As Noctowl flew away to avoid being hit, Ash and Grovyle teamed up to take on the vizier. Being pressed by Ash and Grovyle's agile and swift attacks, Soma had to avoid most of their attacks, while throw some of his own to throw them off. While Grovyle was slashing at Soma with its Leaf Blades, Ash jumped over Grovyle's shoulders and threw a wave of fast kicks. Soma moved his hands quickly to block out as many kicks as he could. Once he stepped back to put space between them, Soma rushed forward for the offensive. "Blazing…!" Taken by surprise, Ash was uppercutted in the stomach, knocking the out wind of him and sending him upward. Soma finished his attack by leaping upward. "BRINGER!"

SMASH!

"Gwah!" Ash was promptly slammed into Grovyle, reducing the impact but causing them both to get knocked down.

Soma's eye caught Noctowl flying towards him in the nick of time, catching the speedy bird by the head. "You're an annoying little pest! Beat it!" Flinging the small owl Pokémon, Noctowl was sent flying into Totodile's mouth, who was about to douse Soma with another Water Gun attack. Totodile started running around in a panic, the bird being caught in its mouth. Soma smirked with amusement and accomplishment. "That oughta keep that reptile's trap shot. Now for the big fish…" Turning around, he saw Snorlax inhaling deeply, small bright orbs flowing into its wide mouth. The attack seemed familiar, almost as if… "Oh…damn…!"

_ZAM! BOOM!_

A large explosion followed the devastating Hyper Beam that targeted the vizier. Out of the explosion appeared Soma, leaping through the air while holding a bright fall of flame in his hand. "Flare Flash!" With a cry, Soma slammed the fire ball into Snorlax's face, the explosion making Snorlax howl in pain and blinded it temporarily. Once the heavyweight Pokémon fell on his back, Soma took the chance to bounce off Snorlax's stomach, landing behind the fallen giant. "Phew! That makes all of them…for now." Soma looked back to see that everyone almost finished reorganizing themselves. It was the perfect chance.

Ash was the first on his feet, prepared for anything Soma was going to throw at him.

But to his surprise, Soma started running away.

"What in the name of…?" That maneuver threw Ash off completely. Retreating was the last thing he expected a powerhouse like Soma to do, especially after he downed everyone. But if Soma was running away…that must've meant he was at a disadvantage. This was a chance Ash couldn't pass up. "Alright guys, we got him on the ropes! Let's get him!" At the call, the Pokémon organized themselves to chase down the Vizier, who was running towards the nearby forest.

Soma couldn't help but curse his luck. Even though he was fast without the weight of his equipment, some of Ash's Pokémon were much faster, namely Grovyle and Noctowl. The two were closing in quickly, attempting to block Soma's escape. "Oh no you don't! Flare Bombs!" Jumping and turning in mid air, Soma tossed several bright spheres at the two Pokémon. The following detonation went off like grenades, disrupting Ash and the Pokémon's chase. This kept the two faster Pokémon at bay, giving Soma enough time to dash into the small forest. The others were soon to follow, not planning to let Soma get away.

Unfortunately for them, Soma was well prepared, cloaking himself heavily within the bushes and forage.

Hiding in an undisclosed location, Soma sat against a thick tree, trying to catch his breath. "Somehow, I knew I would have to do this. Those little pipsqueaks are annoyingly tough to deal with. Good thing I set up the preparations last night, or this battle would get annoying quick." Soma held his hand outward, gathering mana into his hand. "If Ash wants to let loose his guns…I'll bring out the cannons…" Within moments, several cards appeared in his hands, along with a malicious grin on his face.

Meanwhile, with Ash, he couldn't help but feel angry with himself for losing track of Soma. Of course, he had no time for that, he had to keep looking for the brutish vizier. "Can one of you guys get a scent?" He asked his Pokémon. Grovyle and Totodile began sniffing the ground for tracks while Noctowl flew around the perimeter, scanning for any traces of Soma. Snorlax, given he didn't have the most stamina in the world, took the time to catch his breath and reclaim his energy.

"Grovyle!" The giant gecko called, pointing at a spot front of him. He discovered Soma's scent.

"Great work, Grovyle!" Ash clenched his fist, ready for a fight, "Let's go hunt us some So—"

_ZAM!_

"Agh!" Ash stumbled back, a small, but super fast fireball striking him in the chest. Several more shot out suddenly, hitting the rest of the Pokémon. "What was that?" Ash wondered, slightly bewildered. He had no idea where it came from. "It must be Soma revealing himself…!"

"Don't get your hopes up, small one." A new voice spoke up. Everyone faced the owner of the voice, meeting with an unexpected intruder.

It was a dragonoid, similar to Ucarn.

Wielding an enflamed trident, the thin creature stood valiantly against his foes, his red, calculating eyes focused on his targets. On his forearms and shins were silver, spiked armaments and on his head was a tri-horned helmet. Though the reptilian creature had on light, leathered armor, his shoulder armor was wide, built like a thick disk and behind them was a large, curved blades shaped with a fiery design. "You shall not go any further, small ones."

"Who are you?" Ash questioned, taking a guard position.

Twirling the trident, the creature pointed it at Ash. "I'm known as Sapian Tark, the dervish. I need not know your names. It stands that you all are my opponents and must be crushed."

Ash was starting to get an idea of what was going on. He should've guessed Soma wasn't at a real disadvantaged, but rather led him into a trap. Soma was most likely planning to fight Pokémon with…whatever those creatures were. "Grovyle, Noctowl, go ahead and find Soma! We'll keep Sapian busy!"

Almost immediately, the two Pokémon dashed past Sapian, who didn't budge to defend their advance. "Foolish. Did you really think I would be sent alone to fend off 5 attackers? Soma is no fool of your capabilities."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "Not alone? That means…!"

_SLASH! SWIPE!_

Grovyle and Noctowl were knocked back into the opening, injured from a powerful slash. Another creature jump flipped into the opening, standing next to Sapian. Unlike Sapian, this creature had a brighter skin tone than the average dragonoid, having orange skin. He wore full body, silver armor, light enough to put emphasis on speed as did the small boosters on his back. On his armored forearms was a pair of silver arm blades with orange edges, sharp enough to slice through stone easily. "This looks fun…" the small dragonoid grinned excitedly.

"Your entrance is as dramatic as always, Magnus…" Sapian mused lightly.

'_So these…weird guys are Kaijudos…'_ Ash remembered Brock and Soma's battle. How they appeared out of cards were beyond him, but the fact they were extremely powerful was not to be taken lightly. Though Sapian and Magnus didn't seem as tough as Ucarn, Ash was positive they would pose a threat. But either Soma underestimated his Pokémon, or miscounted. "2 against 5, huh? That doesn't sound too fair."

"The situation is not nearly in your favor as you may assume. It's not healthy to judge so hastily." At the end of Sapian's statement, 4 assailants and a much smaller attacker speedily jumped over the two Kaijudos, charging at Ash. The small one managed to slam into Ash's stomach, knocking the wind out of the boy. This allowed the 4 others to tackle Ash and drag him away from his Pokémon.

The remaining four members of Ash's group attempted to chase after him, but Magnus jumped in front of them. "Oh no you don't! We have specific orders to separate Ash from your little posse. I can have some fun shreddin' ya piece by piece! Hehehehe…!"

"Hey, Magnus." Sapian stood on the opposite side of Magnus, focusing his attention on his two preferred opponents. "I'll take on the giant thing and the blue thing. You can have the rest."

"I like that idea! They look nice and tender too!" Magnus licked his blade, dying for a tasty treat.

Totodile stepped back, glaring at Sapian Tark. "[I don't know why…but I feel strange when I look at these guys. I feel like a cornered Pikachu!"

"[Worry not, Totodile. For Ash's sake, we won't let them beat us. I do know how you feel, however. It is as though our old instincts have awakened with great alarm to their presence." Snorlax flexed his muscles, warming up for battle.

Grovyle glanced between Noctowl and Magnus, keeping his guard up. "[I don't like this guy. Noctowl, watch your back. I can't promise I will be able to back you up."

Noctowl, hovering above Grovyle, snorted in response. "[I'm afraid you're talking to the wrong Noctowl. I'm more worried that you might not be able to keep up."

"[Fair enough." Grovyle grinned coolly, chewing on a small twig.

"We've stalled long enough. The time to fight is now!" With that comment, Sapian and Magnus lunged at their respective opponents, who prepared themselves for combat.

Elsewhere from the battling Pokémon and Kaijudo, Ash was tossed into a separate opening inside the forest, landing roughly on the ground. Not wanting to be left vulnerable, Ash quickly jumped to his feet, focused on his attackers. In front of him were 4 muscular, yet agile looking dragonoids, wearing nothing but dark red shorts. Their skin was dark gold and on their hands and feet were three fingers and toes, though they had long, thick nails and claws. They had long braids for hair, and their mouths were shaped almost like beaks, but still had a reptilian design to them.

Ash was in trouble.

"Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town. So finally we meet." a high-pitched, feminine voice called out. Ash looked around, trying to find the owner of the voice. The following growl showed the girl's impatience and irritation. "I'm down here, you bumbling nincompoop!"

"Wha?" Looking down, Ash saw an astonishing sight.

Standing valiantly against him was…a baby chick?

The said chick had bright orange feathers, a grey helmet and armor. On the tip of her tiny wings were small embers of fire burning brightly. "Ahem, I am Kooc Pollon of the Fire Birds, and by Master Soma's orders, I am to…HEY!" Kooc grew infuriated when she was suddenly interrupted by Ash.

By Ash's laughter to be exact.

"PFFT! Hahahaha! Soma sent YOU to defeat ME? That's rich! You're like a cuter version of Torchic!" Ash had to hold onto a tree to prevent himself from falling.

Kooc started stomping her feet, angered by Ash's laughter. "Stop laughing, you vile human! You shall quiver in fear at my power!" One of the dragonoids released a small snort, earning a dark glare from Kooc. "Does something amuse you, Braidclaw A?"

'Braidclaw A' sweat-dropped at the name. "Err…my name is actually—"

"I don't give a flippin' hoot what your name is! You're Braidclaw A, as they are B through D, and that's final! Is that clear?"

"Y-yes ma'am."

"I can't hear you…!"

"YES MA'AM!"

"That's better!" Satisfied with keeping the Braidclaw in line, Kooc turned around, only to _still_ see Ash laughing. That certainly ruffled her feathers. "That's it! I'll show you! Braidclaws, attack!" At the call, the four deadly fighters started running at Ash, brandishing their razor sharp talons. Ash instantly got serious and grimaced at getting ganged up on.

(Fight!! Ver.1 – Grandia 2)

Ash rotated his hands to knock down a flurry of punches and kicks Braidclaw A started hurling his way. Due to the electricity touching the sharp claws, each blocked blow caused a spark to flash. Seeing an opening, Ash dove in, angling his body to dodge a straight punch and move in for the kill. With a free shot, Ash delivered a 3-hit jab to the stomach before thrusting his palm into the dragonoid's chin, pushing it back. Catching Braidclaw B flying at him with a pounce, Ash ducked just in time to avoid having his head cleaved by the attack. Jumping up, he avoided a horizontal swipe from Braidclaw C and countered with an aerial spin kick. The kick was powerful enough to knock Braidclaw C onto the ground, stunning it. Landing on the ground and without glancing back, Ash thrust his elbow back, smashing it into the fourth Braidclaw. The creature released a sharp gasp and stepped back, taking a serious blow to the stomach. Ash grinned to himself as he spun on his heels and slammed the Kaijudo in the chest with his fist, sending him skidding back. "Heh, these guys aren't so tough!" this was starting look almost too easy.

"You bumbling dunderheads!" The fiery chicken roared angrily, stamping about in a frustrated manner, "If you don't get serious, I swear I will rip off your skin and hang you with it! NOW MOVE!"

Ash couldn't help but sweat-drop at the frightening tone of voice. "Scarree…!" His attention was drawn to the four Kaijudo creatures, whose eyes sparkled dangerously at those words. It was clear they answered to the call to battle and was willing to take it seriously.

"SHAA!" One of them cried. The other 3 yelled out their battle cries as well. It was a loud shriek that took Ash by surprise. Without warning, they all suddenly ran at Ash, going into an all out berserk.

Ash stepped back and blocked the first punch from Braidclaw A. Surprisingly; the attack was twice as powerful as before and a lot faster. Though Ash could keep up pretty well, his troubles began once all four started attacking him at once, making it very difficult to keep up. The boy was forced to stay on the defensive.

During the battle, Kooc noticed something strange with Ash's backpack, almost as if something was shifting inside. Suspicious, and while Ash was too busy fighting the Briadclaws, she rushed at Ash and lunged at his backpack with a headbutt.

_WHAM!_

"Ugh!" Ash stumbled forward, knocked off guard by the attack. The attack forced something yellow to jump out.

It was Pikachu.

"Hmph, what a clever trick, using your electric rodent to power-up your attacks. Nice try, but I'm smarter than you might think."

Ash was surprised that the small chicken was able to see through his trick. But it didn't change too much. The main reason he needed Pikachu in his backpack was to disable Soma's use of powerful weaponry while keeping him safe. Besides, he could use the help against the rampaging Kaijudos. "Pikachu, take out Kooc Pollon while I fight these guys!"

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded to Ash then stared down his opponent…soon to burst into laughter. "Pi-pi-pi-pi-pi-pi!" Falling on his back, the mouse started rolling around while laughing hysterically.

Kooc was downright pissed at this point. "WOULD EVERYONE STOP LAUGHING AT ME ALREADY!?" She howled violently. Angered, she shot a flurry of tiny fireballs from her mouth towards Pikachu. The rodent spotted this attack in time to stop laughing and dodged the attack. Kooc Pollon started scratching at the ground with her foot, as though she was preparing to charge. "I hope you're ready, rat. I'm going to light you up and turn you into Pokéchow!" Standing all fours, Pikachu growled at his opponent, electricity cackling on his cheeks.

Pikachu was the first to strike, using Thundershock. "Pika…CHU!"

The attack was about to hit its mark when Kooc moved speedily past the attack and darted towards Pikachu, jumping into a full body headbutt.

_WHAM!_

Elsewhere in the forest, two battles were picking up fiercely inside the deeper end of the forest. One of the battles was particularly fierce.

Totodile hopped and jumped about, avoiding Sapian's hostile advances. The fiery red Kaijudo wielded his trident expertly, making slashes and thrust with precise accuracy. After the tenth miss, Sapian lifted the weapon into the air, the tip of the spear glowing brightly. "Bursting Crush!" Slamming the spear into the ground, the energy built up went off like a bomb, blowing Totodile away. Glancing to the side, Sapian spotted Snorlax storming towards him with a Mega Punch prepared for swinging.

_WHOOSH!_

Sapian jumped over the attack, landing on Snorlax's arm. "Your life ends here!" Twirling his trident, the Kaijudo swung his trident at Snorlax's head—

_SPLASH!_

But he was halted by Totodile's Water Gun, which knocked him off. Landing on the ground, Sapian Tark thrust his spear into the water attack, evaporating the rapid stream. Through the steam, the dragonoid jumped above it, instinctively moving to avoid a sneak attack from Snorlax. Unfortunately for the Pokémon, they were in range of his attack. "Blazing Rain!" Aiming his trident at the two, he shot out a hail of fireballs.

"[Bubblebeam!" Totodile released a wave of thick bubbles at the fire bullets, shielding him and Snorlax from the bombardment.

"Hoooraaaah!" From the air, Sapian divebombed at Totodile with his flaming trident.

Reacting quickly to the assault, Totodile shot a full powered Water Gun at the ground to blast himself away from the dragonoids fatal lunge. However, just as Totodile was about to get out of range, Sapian used the trident as leverage when it pierced into the ground to land a kick at Totodile, sending the croc flying into a tree.

"[Gack!" Totodile gasped. Landing onto his back, he felt a sharp pain shoot through his body. He had only a second to see Sapian flying at him with his trident ready. Still pinned onto the tree, Totodile had no chance to dodge the attack as Sapian pulled back his weapon to drive it into the water-type.

_SMASH!_

A powerful fist drove itself into Sapian's face, the force sending the powerful Kaijudo through a tree and crashing into the bushes. "[Finally landed a punch."

Totodile landed on the ground, panting for air. "That kick took a lot out of me. Thanks for the…LOOK OUT!" The tiny blue croc's eyes widened as a large fireball was sent hurling their way.

"I'll take care of this!" Snorlax braved the large fireball, blocking it. He failed to see the armored warrior slide to the giant Pokémon's side.

_STAB!_

Snorlax gasped sharply as the searing hot trident was plunged into his side. But he wasn't going to take that lying down. He quickly held on the trident before Sapian could take it out and delivered a powerful Mega Punch to his face, sending him sliding roughly on the ground. "[That was…careless of me…" The Pokémon winced at the spear still embedded into his side.

"[Snorlax!" Worried, Totodile bit into the trident and pulled it out. "[Are you gonna be okay!? Don't die on us!"

"[Relax, Totodile. The wound wasn't too deep. Unfortunately, I am unable to fight too much longer." Snorlax knew that Sapian was about to attack again. His Mega Punch wasn't going to keep the dragonoid dazed too much longer. Sapian was indeed a lethal foe. "[…One shot…"

"[What's that?"

The giant Pokémon started to stand with a bit of struggle in his movements. His face darkened from the pain in his side. "[I can manage one Hyper Beam, but it has to count. Give me some time to charge up. But whatever you do…don't let him dodge it."

"[Leave it to me!" Totodile turned to face the direction the dragonoid was knocked towards. It wasn't long before Sapian tark stumbled out, his body bruised from the heavy punches. The Kaijudo was obviously wounded, but also frustrated.

"You two…are a nuisance…" Reaching for the back armor, Sapian pulled at the two sharp blades that were originally meant for design. Unfortunately for the Pokémon, they were also his backup swords. "I will end this now!" He ran at the two Pokémon.

"[Let's dance ya big lummox!" Totodile started bouncing left and right on his feet, tossing his small fist at the dragonoid like a boxer. Sapian's attacks were like a mad dance. His strikes were ferociously quick and deadly. Most of his opponents would've already been turned into mincemeat with the amount of dizzying slashes thrown at his opponent.

But then again, no opponent of his was like Totodile.

"Stand still, damn you!" the irritated Kaijudo could not land a single hit on the dancing croc. From flips, to side steps, and even using Water Gun to cleverly boost his speed, Totodile's dance had managed to save him from getting sliced to pieces. This, however, did not mean the fight was going well for the young croc.

Totodile had no chance for a real offense.

'_[What is with this guy? Does he ever stop to take a break!?'_ Totodile was frantically trying to spot a weakness in Sapian's onslaught of attacks. There were no weaknesses, or if there was any, it was quickly covered up before Totodile could answer to it. Just as Totodile jumped over a horizontal blade strike, Sapian's long tail suddenly wrapped itself around Totodile in the air. Totodile was now immobilized.

"I have you now! Flaming Cross!" Crossing his arms over his chest, Sapian performed a painful double slash on Totodile's chest. The powerful blow sent the blue crocodile tumbling along the ground, painfully slamming his back against a tree. Before Totodile could react, Sapian had pinned him into the tree with his foot, holding the blades at point blank. Sapian leered down at Totodile's weakened state, grinning widely. "Any last words before you become tonight's barbecue?" to Sapian's curiosity, he noticed something suspicious about Totodile.

Was he…smiling?

"[Yeah, just two." As serious as his face could muster, Totodile glared upward at the tall Kaijudo. "[…Your mother!"

"Guh!" Sapian's eyebrow twitched in anger. "Why you filthy piece of…wait a minute!" His instincts were suddenly going wild. Alarmed, he immediately glanced back at Snorlax, and to his horror, saw a large ball of light inside his mouth.

"[Hyper…BEAM!" A large beam of yellow light exploded out of Snorlax's mouth and shot towards Sapian Tark.

"Dammit! It was a trap all along!" Sapian tried to jump out of the way, but something sharp and painful clamped onto his foot. His eyes widened with terror. Totodile's giant mouth had clamped onto his leg. "Y…Y-YOU FOOL! Don't you realize that we BOTH will get hit!?"

From what Sapian could tell, Totodile was smirking at him. "Heh…crazy, ain't it? At least you're going down."

There was no chance of escape for the doomed Kaijudo. "SHI—"

_ZAM!_

The blast struck Sapian dead on, the force thrusting him along the ground and through trees. Totodile was unfortunate enough to be dragged along for the ride. It lasted for only a few short moments, but the results were clear: Sapian Tark the dervish was defeated. His charred and unconscious body was proof of that. The Kaijudo's body began to dissolve into a red substance; it's magically energies being returned to the summoner.

The user of the Hyper Beam fell on his stomach, completely drained from using his last bit of energy. Snorlax peered ahead to see if Totodile was alright. Much to his relief, Totodile was still breathing, lying on his back. With a smile on his large face, Snorlax fainted. Never before did he want to sleep so much.

Close by, another wild battle was reaching a climax. Grovyle held onto his wounded arm, growling at his adversary. Noctowl was flying at a low altitude, too injured to fly very high. While both Pokémon were speedy in their own right, Magnus's speed was on an entirely new level.

_SLASH!_

"[Argh!" In slow motion, Magnus could be seen rushing by Grovyle and slashing him along the ribs. It wasn't a deep cut, but it was incredibly painful.

"[I got him!" Noctowl cawed, swooping down for the kill. If he could at least strike the booster on Magnus's back, the Kaijudo's speed would be effectively cut. The owl Pokémon was a split second away from striking when his target disappeared.

"Too slow!" Magnus managed to not only evade the attack, but appeared right behind the owl. Using his sharpened metal claws, he slashed at Noctowl's back. With a painful cry, Noctowl crashed into the earth.

"[Noctowl!" Grovyle immediately sprung into action and leapt at Magnus. The opposing dragonoid saw this attack coming, and with his backpack thruster, jumped up high enough to avoid getting cut by Grovyle's Leaf Blade. However, what the Kaijudo didn't plan for was one of Grovyle's other signature attacks: Bullet Seed. It struck his face and chest with high velocity. Using the thrusters again, Magnus dodged the bullets and landed in one of the trees, attempting to recover. The gecko Pokémon used this time to rush over to his fallen comrade. "[Noctowl, hang in there!"

Noctowl opened his eyes weakly, seeing Grovyle's worried expression. "[…Heh, I was…a bit careless. But...it was worth it. At least…this way…you have…a chance to…to…" After that statement, the all-seeing Pokémon fainted.

Magnus jumped back into the opening and glared at Grovyle. "You made a very big mistake agitating me! Now I'll shred ya twice as bad! Burning Rush!" The thrusters pushed Magnus's speed to supersonic bounds, creating a fiery trail.

"[Leaf Blade!" Left with no choice but to attack, Grovyle exchanged blades with Magnus. The young gecko struggled to defend against Magnus's amazingly speedy movements. Magnus's fire element proved to be gradually damaging. If Grovyle wanted to defeat the super quick dragonoid, he had to find a weakness. Or at least, lower Magnus's speed. This opportunity was presented to him in a flash as Magnus made a dash under Grovyle's guard, slicing through his ribs._'[What…what was that…? It almost looked like a…'_

"Had enough yet?" With a flashy spin, Magnus slid to a halt. Though Magnus needed a breather to recover, he knew Grovyle was far too weakened to put up a real fight. This battle was almost a joke.

"Your master is probably dead by now. Our allies should be done dealing with them soon." Magnus sneered down at the weakened Pokémon. Grovyle's eyes were closed as he held a calm expression. His hand was clutched onto his wounded ribs. "Huh? What's with that face? Perhaps you've come to realize that there's nothing you can do to save yourself and that Ash kid."

"[Heh…not quite." Grovyle tossed a frightening look at Magnus. The Kaijudo almost stumbled back in surprise. "[Actually, I'd say that I already won this battle."

"W-w-what!? What kind of stupid bluff is this!?"

"[Bluff? I think you have me mistaken for some kind of fool. This isn't a bluff. This…is a promise." Grovyle's body shifted into a battle position, his legs slightly spread apart and his arms prepared to attack or defend. "[Of course, with the frozen look of fear on your face, I suppose my victory can be claimed now."

"Why that cocky little…" Magnus grew enraged by the mockery. He wasn't going to be insulted by a weak Pokémon. Being the proud Kaijudo he was, this was beyond an insult. It was a declaration of war. "NOW YOU DIE!" With a wild lunge, the Kaijudo ran at Grovyle with arm blades prepped for the fatal blow.

Grovyle's eyes were completely focused, taking in every moment. Magnus was a slim moment from slitting his throat when Grovyle called out an attack. "[Detect!"

_WHOOSH!_

"What…!?" Magnus's eyes widened when he quickly realized he attacked nothing. In mid flight, he spotted Grovyle behind him. "Im…I-IMPOSSIBLE!" With a victorious smirk, Grovyle pierced his Leaf Blade into the center of Magnus's jetpack.

_BOOM!_

The explosion knocked the two away from each other. Magnus slammed headfirst into a tree while Grovyle crashed into the earth. Thankfully, the blow to the head combined with the explosion knocked Magnus unconscious. As the gecko Pokémon lay on his back exhausted, he thought back to what gave him the edge to win.

A star.

Grovyle should've known Noctowl didn't blindly rush in to tackle Magnus. Noctowl must have spotted the weak point of his backpack and discretely shot a Swift attack at it. It landed right where the main engine was. It was a chancy move, but their combined effort took down the troublesome Kaijudo. Out of habit, Grovyle placed a small leaf stick in his mouth before his limbs fell limp. "[Well…that's it for me. I just pray that Ash and Pikachu aren't getting over their heads like they always do…"

With Ash and Pikachu, they were holding their ground against the 5 Kaijudos attacking them. The battle seemed as though it would go on forever.

But suddenly, Kooc Pollon stopped fighting. Her face seemed alert for a moment, but then her expression turned sinister. "Oh boy! You guys are in for it now! I don't want to be in the way for this! Braidclaws, retreat!" At this, Kooc and the braidclaws split apart and disappeared into the forest.

"Wha…?" Ash was very perplexed. Though Ash and Pikachu were covered in cuts and burns, their injuries weren't bad enough to keep them from fighting. So why would they leave without trying to defeat them? "What on earth is Soma planning…?" His train of thought was cut off by a strange sound. It almost sounded like…a helicopter? He looked at the sky to see a horrifying sight. The boy's body froze at the terror flying above him.

"LET'S FIGHT!!" Soma howled, riding on top of a large, red, armored wyvern. The huge dragon creature had no wings to fly, but was equipped with a huge helicopter blade on the middle of its back and a small one on its tail. Right under the helicopter was a pair of air thrusting boosters for increased speed. Most of its body was heavily coated with thick metal plates and armor, coupled together with advanced technology and weapons. Its small, raptor-like arms held onto a mechanism that resembled small airplane wings, carrying a huge payload of missiles and gatling guns. Its long neck and head were protected as well, a caged, metal frame shaped around its head to prevent injury.

Ash couldn't believe his eyes once it landed on the strange, yet dangerous looking creature. It roared at him fiercely, obviously displaying hostility towards its foe.

Ash's fierce battle had turned into a very deadly game of cat and mouse.


	20. Hot Pursuit!

_**Chapter 20 – Hot pursuit**_

Cerulean City – Misty's room

Misty's sigh enveloped the room's void, making the mood dreary. Though her body was wrapped with a plethora of bandages, she managed to use some of Kasumi's mana to recover most of her injuries, which wasn't too serious. She had a lot to think about, most of which involved Ash and Satoshi. Whenever she would ask Kasumi what happened, she would get the same answer.

"We lost."

"Come on! You gotta tell me more than that! I mean, Satoshi was in control right before he knocked me out! It couldn't have just ended there. Not with the wounds I had."

"Well…" rare as it was, Kasumi was embarrassed with the way they made amends. "It's actually pretty complicated to explain…"

_Knock! Knock!_

"Maybe it's my sisters…" Curious, Misty got off her bed and opened the door, only to be greeted by an unfamiliar face.

"Yo! You must be Misty." Zansei greeted.

"What the…who are you…?" Misty was immediately on her guard, noticing the lance on the boy's back.

"The name's Zansei. I was wondering if you wanted to meet Brock and watch Ash's fight."

"Zansei…" the ghostly Kasumi appeared next to Misty, giving the boy a questioning glance. "Zansei…as in, Zansei the Ground Vizier?"

"A vizier? Does that mean…?" Misty took a step away from Zansei, unsure of Zansei's fighting potential.

"Whoa, whoa, relax! I'm not here to fight anyone!" Zansei waved his hands defensively.

"I can't help but be edgy since every vizier we've met wanted to kill us!"

"Well, we may seem like freakish, badass villains, but I can assure you that not all of us are out for blood. I guess you can say we aren't very organized. But let's not worry about me! Let's meet Brock!" Grabbing Misty's hand, Zansei dragged her along. Misty didn't refuse his offer, but was still cautious of him.

It didn't take very long until the two arrived at the hospital. When they arrived at Brock's room, they noticed a shocked look on his face. Worried, they walked over to the breeder. "Hey Brock, what is…what is…?" Misty's words were stuck in her throat as she watched the television wide eyed. As she watched, the screen showed Ash running for his life through a forest. However, what was chasing Ash was the source for her shock.

Zansei was equally surprised. "Soma actually went so far as to summon Gatling Skyterror on one boy? Incredible…"

"Gatling Skyterror?"

"Skyterrors are a race of armored wyverns that use human technology to boost their attack, defense, and agility. Think of them as dragons with huge guns."

"That…is not a normal Pokémon. I've never seen anything like that in the books." Brock said, still amazed. That dragon looked like it could easily tear through a Dragonite.

"That's because it's not a Pokémon. It's a Kaijudo.

This got Misty's attention, hearing that name before. "What on earth is a Kaijudo? And how do they get summoned out of a card like that?"

"Kaijudos are mystical creatures that come from a world outside our dimension. Those cards are formed after creating a Summoning Pact with them, which is as it sounds, making a deal in order to summon them to your aid. Think of it as a thinner Pokéball. There are also spells that originate from the Kaijudo realm, but that's a story for another day."

Brock had to hold onto his head, getting a headache from the culture shock. He wanted to say that story was crap, but he dealt with the Kaijudo first-hand and knew there were no Pokémon like that. "That…doesn't make much sense. Another dimension? Cards? That sounds a bit too…unreal."

"Nevermind that, Ash must be giving Soma a run for his money if he forced him to summon Gatling Skyterror. I wonder if there's still a flicker of hope for him…" Zansei was worried that Soma was going a bit too far. But then again, he had yet to know of Ash's potential and luck. He was more than interested to see how Ash could get out of this one.

_(God of Conversation – Shinobi)_

Speaking of Ash, bullets and explosions followed his path of escape, not giving him even a moment to retaliate. "HAHAHA! How do you like it now, Ash?" Soma boasted, clinging onto the wyvern.

"Why does this always happen to me?" Ash cried, sprinting ahead. Gatling Skyterror's machine guns were ripping through the trees and rocks, leaving Ash with very little cover to hide. He had to find a high elevation to fight back before he got mauled.

"PIKA!"

"What is it Pika—oh my…!" Ash's jaw dropped as he saw two missiles being deployed at his direction. There was no real way to dodge it, but he could destroy them. "Quick, use Thunder Shock!" At Ash's command, Pikachu peeked out of the backpack released the electric attack at the missiles, destroying them.

"Grr…damn rat. Let's see how he handles this! Gatling Skyterror, fire four missiles and scatter them!" The flying wyvern shot four missiles from under his wings at an angle where they would surround Ash.

Now Ash was in a dilemma.

'_They're too fast! Pikachu can only take two of them out in time!' _Ash had to think quickly before he got blown to bits. Thankfully, he was crafty under pressure. "Pikachu, jump out and destroy the two ahead!" Though Pikachu was uncertain of his friend's plan, he leapt out of the backpack and fired two Thunder Shocks at the missiles flying in front of Ash. Unfortunately for Ash, the two behind were too swift to have Pikachu destroy them, so he did the next best thing. With a strong push, Ash jumped high in the air, and then double jumped to get a high altitude. The missiles curved at Ash's direction, and impact was imminent. "Here was go!" With a cry, Ash twisted his body and spun in the air. He did it so one of his feet would kick the first missile downward and the other with knock it upward. Amazingly, the first one flew towards the ground, exploding in a fiery burst. The other went towards the sky and ignited.

"Holy crap! That actually worked?" Soma gaped, stunned.

"Holy crap! That actually worked!" Ash blinked unbelievingly, landing with a skid. He was taken out of his stupor by a fireball being lodged in his direction and resumed running.

The chase led to the city, where Ash was desperately seeking a safe location. He didn't want civilians to be hurt, so he needed to find somewhere desolate. Luckily, he noticed a building nearby, abandoned and burned out. Luck seemed to be on his side after all…more or less. "Come to think of it, why is there always an abandoned building conveniently placed nearby?" Shrugging off his thoughts, Ash and Pikachu dove inside the run down building, barely dodging a hail of bullets and fireballs.

Gatling Skyterror hovered near the building, awaiting Soma's orders. "What is your plan now, Soma? Should I just crush this structure?"

Soma sat crossed-legged on the wyvern's back, contemplating. "No, that would be too easy and would require too much firepower. I have a better idea…"

Inside, Ash was quickly climbing the floors. There were six floors to traverse in order to reach the roof. He had to count his lucky stars that Soma didn't just destroy the building. But that didn't mean he was out of trouble. Something was up. On the second floor, Pikachu's ears perked up, detecting a presence nearby. From the stairway appeared three Braidclaws, all of them intending to tear Ash down.

Ash had no time to waste dealing with them. "Pikachu, Thunder Wave!" At the call, Pikachu released a weak wave of electricity that struck two of the Braidclaws, paralyzing their muscles.

"You'll pay human!" The remaining Braidclaw jumped in the air, lunging at Ash with his sharp claws. Ash dodged the first strike, and with a spin, smashed his elbow into the Braidclaw's face. Writhing in pain, the dragonoid collapsed on the floor, holding his face. Ash quickly proceeded to the next floor.

On the next floor, Ash could hear the sound of Gatling Skyterror flying towards the side of the building that had five windows. There wasn't much cover in the empty room except for two stone pillars. In a roll, Ash quickly jumped to the first pillar and hid behind it. The flying wyvern appeared outside the windows, slowly hovering from one window to the other to detect Ash. If that dragon spotted him, he would be in a world of trouble. What made matters worse was the sound of more footsteps coming from the lower level. '_This would be a good time to use Shadow Shift, that way I could just…'_ Stopping his train of thought, he was reminded of his argument with Satoshi. No, he would never resort to getting help from someone who didn't care about hurting his friends. He would use his own power. Unfortunately, that thought didn't make his situation any easier.

Outside the window, Soma peered closely through the windows in search of Ash. He knew the boy was somewhere in the third floor, but he didn't know where exactly. With several more Braidclaws arriving at the floor, it was only a matter of time. Suddenly, he saw Ash dart out of the first pillar, running for the stairway. "Hurry, use—"

"Pikachu, use Flash!"

"AH!" Gatling Skyterror and Soma had to shut their eyes, shutting out the blinding light. By the time they were able to open their eyes, Ash was halfway through the fourth floor. "Damn runt! Gatling Skyterror, let's greet him on the roof. He won't have cover there."

"Why wait? I can easily clear a floor with a few bombs. I think you're taking this kid too lightly."

"No, in fact, this will be more fun. Besides, he won't be able to go back thanks to my _other_ plan…"

"Bah, I still think we're wasting time." The dragon abided and started flying upward. Before they passed the sixth floor, Soma tossed a steel sphere through the window, leaving the trainer with a deadly surprise.

With Ash, he and Pikachu had just finished dispatching four Braidclaws and reached the fifth floor. Thankfully, there were no signs of anymore Kaijudos to deal with. He was about to proceed when he saw the sphere that was thrown earlier on the ground. "What's this?" When Ash examined it, he was met with a startling realization.

10…9…8…

"It's a bomb! RUN FOR IT!" Running for his life, Ash start sprinting towards the stairway and made his way to the next floor.

7…6…5…4…

As Ash arrived on the final floor, he pushed his body to go as fast a possible, reaching his hand out to the door that led to the roof.

3…2…1…0.

KABOOM!

Hot, searing flames burst out of the sixth floor window and quickly climbed towards the roof. Ash shoulder dashed the door, knocking it off the hinges. The flames almost caught him, but he managed to successfully reach the roof unharmed. "Phew, glad that's over!" Ash sighed, relieved for the moment.

"Really? But the fun is just beginning!" Soma shouted, hovering closely to the building.

That moment of relief was quickly vanquished for Ash. "…Crap."

The fire Vizier jumped from Gatling Skyterror, the ground cracking from the weight of the drop. "No escape now, Ash! No cover, no tricks, and best of all, no hope left for you!"

Ash took a step back, doubtful about handling Soma AND Gatling Skyterror at the same time. He quickly took a glance at his watch. "Right on time…"

"Huh? On time for what? Nevermind, I'll just crush you before anything happens! RAAAH!" Soma stormed towards Ash, his fist engulfed in flames. The trainer dodged left and right, stepping backwards with each step. The flames brushed Ash's skin repeatedly, leaving burn marks.

"Pikachu, use Flash!" Pikachu jumped out of Ash's backpack, preparing to blind Soma.

"Dammit, use a different trick already!" With a dash, Soma landed a direct hit on Pikachu, sending him flying off to the edge of the building.

"No! Pika-ACK!" Ash received a punch in the face, knocking him over and rolling towards Pikachu.

"I think it's time to end this childish game. Gatling Skyterror, finish them with a bang!"

"About time!" The armored wyvern shot two missiles at the duo.

Now Ash was in trouble. He quickly glanced at his watch again, grabbed Pikachu and rolled off the building before the missiles hit. Soma knew he couldn't survive a fall like that, but he might be able to survive if he used Satoshi's power. Just in case, he should check it out. He peered over the edge of the roof to see the boy's fate.

"Charizard, use flamethrower!"

_FWOOSH!_

"ARGH!" The flames struck Soma's face, the force knocking him back. Luckily, his element made the attack do little damage. But what rose from where Ash fell was a surprising sight.

Ash rode on top of an orange dragon, one that was Ash's most powerful ally, Charizard. "That was awesome timing Charizard!"

"Dammit! I never knew he had something like that!" Soma quickly ran to his dragon, jumping back on. "No matter! Gatling Skyterror, let's give them hell!"

"Finally, something fun for once!" Soma's dragon began using its gatling guns at Charizard, who started flying away speedily. Gatling Skyterror was hot on Charizard's heels.

(Red hot battlefield – Pokémon)

Ash knew very well he couldn't fight him inside the city without chancing casualties. He needed to at least find a vantage point to strike from. Those guns would rip Charizard a new one if they were sloppy. "Charizard, try to avoid damaging the city too much. But other than that, let's take him down! Use another Flamethrower!" The fiery dragon peeked at the Kaijudo from its belly and let loose a stream of flame while dodging the gunfire.

"Hmph, use overboost to get in close and bite." Soma commanded. The armored wyvern put full throttle into its boosters and dove straight into the flames. To Ash's surprise, the dragon broke through the fire and opened its dangerous jowls, attempting to bite Charizard's tail.

"Pikachu, Thundershock!" Ash quickly shouted. With a powerful zap, the wyvern was stunned and slowed down. "Charizard, concentrate on navigating through these buildings! Pikachu and I will help keep Soma off your back!" Ash was beginning to see the true terror of the Kaijudos. Charizard's flamethrower did nothing to Gatling Skyterror. Their only hope was to find some way to disable the flying dragon.

Hopefully it came before Soma wiped them from the skies.

A lethal dogfight followed as the two flew at high speeds through building, unleashing explosive attacks. It was a high-speed chase, where the slightest error in judgment would mean death. Just when Ash thought Charizard's agility would leave Gatling Skyterror in the dust, the helicopter-equipped dragon pulled an evasive maneuver that was jaw dropping. This didn't mean Soma was having an easy time catching Ash. When it seemed like he was about to cripple them, Charizard or Pikachu would manage to find a way to elude them. Both parties were struggling to defeat the other while staying alive and evading buildings and other such obstacles.

After several agonizing minutes of chasing, Ash felt he was in a more abandoned part of the city where he could avoid injuring civilians. At this point, however, he realized his options were very minimal. With all but two of his pokemon knocked out, as well as refusing Satoshi's help, Ash was left with only one way of defeating Gatling Skyterror.

Board it.

Of course, there were several problems with this strategy. It required utmost precision. Should he fail, he would either fall to his death, land into Soma's fist of death, shot to death by Gatling Skyterror, bitten to death by the wyvern's large fangs, or bladed to death by the chopper.

…Ash never realized there were so many ways he could die.

"I have no choice. I'll have to take it to the clouds. Charizard, let's get up there, quick!" Ash hung tightly onto Pikachu and Charizard as the fire pokemon started climbing quickly towards the clouds.

Soma was about to follow Ash into the clouds when a thought his him. "HOLD IT!"

Gatling Skyterror stopped immediately, hovering several meters away from the clouds. "You better have a damn good reason for stopping me now, Soma!"

"Don't be in such a rush. That brat has far too many tricks for his own good. He wants us to follow him there. We're not going to fall for his trick. Instead, let's smoke him out. Fire several missiles into the clouds." As commanded, the wyvern began firing several volleys into the clouds, creating a massive wave of explosions. After the third volley, Soma could see Charizard falling out of the clouds.

Soma was the victor of this battle.

"Nice try Ash, but you're years away from outsmarting me! Let's finish—what the?" Soma noticed something wrong when Charizard began to spin faster and faster. Suddenly, the dragon tossed something into Soma's direction at high velocity.

That something was Ash.

'That kid is nuts! …I like it!' While Soma commended him for his guts, there was no way he was going to let him succeed. "Gatling Skyterror, shoot that br—"

"Pikachu! Use Flash!" Ash was enveloped in a blinding light, preventing Gatling Skyterror from aiming correctly.

"Damn kid! Is that the only attack he knows?" Soma was getting incredibly infuriated with Pikachu's Flash attack. While blinded, however, he couldn't see Ash flying towards him with his fist raised.

"KETCHUM CANNON!"

POW!

"GWAH!" Soma gasped as Ash landed a devastating punch into his stomach, the force pushing him against the base of the wyvern's chopper.

Successfully boarding the dragon, Ash backed away from Soma and took up guard. "Phew! I somehow made it!"

Soma recovered quickly, growling at Ash. "Damn you, Ash! That may have been a clever maneuver, but we're in close-quarters combat now! No more dodging like a monkey for you!"

Ash grinned wickedly. "Actually, I have a better idea! Pikachu?"

Soma's eyes started widening, as did the dragon's. "No…you wouldn't…"

"Oh, but I would! Pikachu, use Thunder!" At Ash's call, Pikachu powered up a large amount of voltage and unleashed it from the clouds above, striking Gatling Skyterror and its riders. Though Ash received some damage from the lightning as well, his mission was completed.

Gatling Skyterror's engine was destroyed.

"Oh CRAP!" Soma gaped in horror as his dragon started falling towards the earth. He was about to grab Ash when the boy jumped off, leaving Soma to his fate.

"CHARIZAAAARD!" Ash cried out. Thankfully, Charizard was close enough to catch Ash, safely flying towards the ground.

The same could not be said for Soma.

_**CRAAASH! BOOM!**_

Soma and his dragon fell through one of the older, unused buildings, breaking through the middle. A large explosion followed thanks to the more volatile components of Gatling Skyterror. The dragon dematerialized, defeated and unconscious by the fall. Landing in front of the building, Ash readied himself, positive that Soma wasn't defeated yet.

But there was no way Soma got out of that unscathed.

Suddenly, Ash heard foot steps, followed by Soma stepping out of the building. The vizier was in terrible shape. His body was bloodied and scarred badly. While Ash was grateful he didn't kill him, he was astounded that the tiger vizier could still walk.

"Hehehe…you…" Soma chuckled darkly, holding onto his heavily injured arm. "You are quite possibly the best challenge I could've hoped for. I'm still surprised that I'm actually losing, and the fact I'm being serious is adding insult to injury. Truly, I am glad that I let you live to challenge me again. However…" His eyes grew dark and narrow as he pulled out a small, red ball from his tattered pocket. "When you corner a wounded tiger…expect frightening results…" He placed the object into his mouth and crunched on it, swallowing the contents.

**_Grr…_**

"What is this…?" Ash stood in a defensive pose. His instincts screamed 'RUN!', but his legs were shaking too much to bother doing so. Pikachu's fur was standing on end, hissing at the trembling Soma.

**_Grr…!_**

Charizard, out of defense and listening to his instincts, shot a powerful Fire Blast at Soma. The attack engulfed Soma in a large pillar of flame. Ash was surprised with Charizard's hastiness.

Obviously, this meant something dangerous was about to happen.

"RAWR!" With a cry, Charizard, flew at Soma, knocking the flame engulfed Soma into the building and crashing through the wall. Silence hung in the air for a moment, followed by tension. Ash waited nervously for Charizard to come out of the building. Moments later, there was a shrill cry of pain from inside.

One of which, to Ash's horror, belonged to Charizard.

_WHOOSH!_

A blast suddenly erupted from inside the building, and Charizard was flung into the air, landing roughly behind Ash.

"Charizard!" Ash, worried about Charizard's wounds, turned around and was about aid his wounded Pokémon when he heard an alienated, dark hiss from behind, followed by a looming shadow. Glancing behind slowly with wide eyes, he saw and realized exactly what Zansei warned him about.

Behind Ash stood a 10 foot monster with a red mane and short, yellow fur. Black tiger stripes covered his arms, back, and face. The shirt the beast once wore was long gone, and the shorts barely stayed on, something Ash was eternally thankful for. The black bandages covering his arms and legs still held together, but did nothing to conceal the massive muscles that nearly tripled their original size. The claws were several times sharper and thicker than original, enough so it would easily tear into flesh. The tiger striped tail grew thicker, a little bigger than Ash's arms. What especially frightened Ash were the tiger eyes that stared down upon him, like a predator about to tear into his vulnerable prey.

Ash was frightened for his life.

"Ash Ketchum…" The voice was very deep and chilling, filled with malice for the boy. "This land shall be your grave…!"


	21. Martyr

**_Chapter 21 – Martyr_**

(Animal I have become – three days grace)

Cerulean City - Battlefield

"GRAAAAAH!" Soma's battle roar was powerful enough to shatter the windows nearby. His deeper, more menacing voice devastated Ash and Pikachu's moral, freezing them with fear. He saw this as an advantage and rushed Ash with newfound speed that surpassed his.

_SLAM!_

Ash yelped as he was shoulder rushed by Soma, rolling on the ground. He recovered quickly and regained his guard. It didn't help that Soma ran at him even quicker. "Holy—"

_SLASH!_

Jumping away from Soma's slash in the nick of time, Ash gasped at the scar left on the ground. The asphalt was partially melted from the claw strike. "Oh come on! Run for it, Pikachu!" Ash spun around and started sprinting away as fast as he could. Pikachu followed closely, but Soma was even closer.

"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY, KETCHUM!!" Soma pursued Ash on all fours, his thirst for blood fueling his anger. Ash embarrassed him one too many times this fight.

Death was the only suitable punishment for the mortal.

As Ash cut corners and jumped over obstacles, Soma bulldozed through everything and anything in his way. Ash had no idea how he was going to fight this beast. His only remaining Pokémon was Pikachu, not to mention they were both reaching their stamina limit. Though he managed to get some rest while riding Charizard, he was nowhere used to fighting this hard for such a long time. Even while running on fear and adrenaline, Ash was losing strength fast. He needed to recover and plan.

Unfortunately, Soma wasn't in a mood for either option.

"Ooooh…!" While chasing, Soma's mouth started absorbing red and orange particles in his mouth. Whatever was about to happen was going to be devastating. "FLARE BURST! HA!" A gigantic fireball shot from Soma's mouth at a super fast speed.

Ash turned around just in time to block it with his gloves.

_KABOOM!_

"GAH!" The force sent Ash soaring like a bullet, crashing hard into the asphalt. His hands were gravely burned and singed from the blast. Blocking such an attack was definitely one of Ash's worst ideas.

It was just as bad as freezing with fright as he saw Soma leaping at him like a hungry wolf.

_CHOMP!_

Ash tilted his head just in time to avoid having his head bitten off by the tyrant. Soma's bite attacks continued, and Ash doing his best to avoid losing his head. Unfortunately, Ash panicked when he saw a bite attack that was about to strike dead-on.

_CHOMP!_

Ash blocked it with his left arm, howling in agony as his arm was bitten by Soma's sharp jowls. The pain was added as he noticed that Soma's teeth also gained a fiery boost with his transformation. His teeth not only pierced him through the bones, but were also melting it. "GYAAAAH!" Ash started punching his face while screaming in agonizing pain.

_ZAP!_

"Grrrrr!" Soma growled as a powerful Thunder attack struck him from behind. He still held tight, determined to at least rip Ash's arm off. He almost succeeded until Pikachu aimed a Zap Cannon to his face. "RAAAH!" Soma finally released Ash's arm and got off the trainer, holding his face that burned with electricity.

Ash almost fainted from the devastating pain in his arm. Soma's two long fangs went through his forearm and bicep muscles, also piercing through his bones. Combined with the heat that could melt steel, Ash was in great agony. The rush of blood pouring out was almost enough to kill him. Ash knew his arm was useless now, but he could not stop. If Soma caught him again, he would be dead.

He stood up with wobbly legs, following Pikachu to a safer spot. Recovery was a must. The poor trainer couldn't even see straight, straining to keep conscious. Ash truly feared for his life. Pikachu offered to stay and keep Soma busy, but the last thing he wanted was to send Pikachu to his death.

Ash wasn't even sure whether he would bleed to death before Soma found him or not.

After a minute of blindness, Soma peeked his eyes open, only to find no trace of Ash. However, there was a trail of blood leading around the corner. "I will find you, Ash. And I WILL kill you!" Following his primal instincts, Soma started his hunt for Ash.

Speaking of Ash, he was resting inside a dark, empty building nearby. He could feel his conscious fading. His arm was beyond medical help. No matter the pain, he had to keep quiet and cautious. Soma was bound to find him soon, and he had to think of a plan before he was killed.

"_This is ridiculous…"_ Satoshi said with a hint of sorrow in his voice. _"Perform the spirit-sync with me so we can try and end this."_

'…_No.'_

Satoshi's eyes widened. _"WHAT!?"_

'_I won't do it. I already told you, didn't I?'_

Satoshi was flabbergasted. Never before had he seen such stupidity and stubbornness. _"Open your eyes, fool! What good will that do you if you end up dying over it? Stop this insanity and synchronize with me, damn it!"_

'_I…will do this with my own strength, not yours. You can call me whatever you like, but I won't ever forgive you for hurting my friends. I can't forgive you.'_ Ash attempted to stand, but stumbled. The pain was too much to bear. It felt like two flaming swords went through his arm, searing it from the inside. What could he do in this situation?

_CRASH!_

A large hand burst through the wall behind him and gripped Ash. Ash stared at the face of death, terror striking the core of his heart.

Soma's grin was not a good sign.

"I'm going to enjoy this…" Soma snarled.

Cerulean City – Hospital

"No, Ash!" Misty was at the edge of her bed, staring at the one-sided battle in horror.

Brock shared Misty's inner torment, watching his best friend getting mauled by Soma. "I can't stand this. I have to do something." He was about to leave when Zansei stood in front of the door. Brock did not like this. "Move."

"You're in no position to do anything."

Brock's anger flared. He knew Zansei was right, but that did not mean he was going to accept it. "I said move!"

"Try me." Zansei provoked.

"RAH!" Brock swung his fist at Zansei, only to hit a wall of sand at appeared from behind the vizier. He continued to swing his hands, only to hit sand walls.

"If you can't even get pass me, you don't stand a chance in hell of facing Soma." Zansei did not like this situation any more than Misty or Brock did. He knew Soma was afraid of losing the battle, so afraid that he was going all out on a young kid. If Soma lost, his fighting spirit would be crushed. It didn't help that Soma could die from eating that Adrenaline Pill. As long as he was conscious, he would continue fighting at full strength, ignoring his body's stamina and condition. If the battle dragged on too long, Soma could die from battle fatigue without realizing it.

He was not going to allow that.

This was Soma's first time using the Adrenaline Pill, and he was almost impossible to control. Zansei would have to use force to stop him. _'Come on Ash. Why aren't you using Satoshi's power? This doesn't make sense.'_ He glanced over at Brock and Misty. Misty was in tears while Brock was still punching the wall of sand. Brock's fist did not have any strength behind it, still fatigued from his earlier battle. The vizier was not heartless. He felt their pain.

It was the same pain he felt when he saw his best friend fall to Shinra on that fateful day.

'_Seriously, Shinra, you really messed Soma up big time. How could you do such a thing?'_ Zansei didn't want to think too much of it. Whatever happened in the past will stay there. He could only hope that Soma could let go of the past before it corrupt his soul even further.

He truly wanted Ash to win.

Just how the boy would do that…not even he knew.

'_If worst comes to worst, I'll have to stop him myself.'_ Zansei watched on, witnessing the brutal battle between Ash and Soma.

Cerulean City – Battlefield

Satoshi could not comprehend it.

Here Ash was facing a threat that was quickly overwhelming him. At first, he thought the boy would actually be able to overthrow the destructive vizier. Things were going even better than he expected. But then Soma transformed into his awakened form…and that was when things went downhill.

Like a ragdoll, Ash was getting thrown, bitten, burned, battered, and utterly crushed. It was exactly as Zansei predicted: Ash stood no chance against Soma's awakened form. But regardless of the odds stacked against him and his defeat imminent, Ash was still struggling vainly. But it was not this that confused Satoshi.

It was the fact Ash STILL refused his aid.

"_Ash, enough's enough! Use the spirit-sync!"_ Satoshi barked.

_SMACK!_

Soma's fist drove into Ash's stomach and sent him flipping into the air, only to crash hard onto the pavement. Ash could barely move, let alone fight back. _'Never!'_

Satoshi knew for a long time that logic wasn't one of Ash's strongest characteristics. Here was Ash's true chance to try and defeat Soma in his most powerful form, and he wasn't going to use his help to at least have a chance of victory. _"This is pointless and pure suicide! You're going to die if you don't use my power!"_

Ash stood weakly on his feet, too dazed to hold a straight focus. The pain, combined with sheer exhaustion, made his vision blurry. His body was charred, bruised, and covered with deep cuts. 4 minutes passed after Soma's awakening, and Ash was already in the critical zone of health. _'I'd rather die than use your powers. I'll never forgive anyone who hurts my friends.'_

"_Forget about that for now! There's no point in dying thoughtlessly!"_

'_This is coming from the person who took over my body without my permission and injured Misty in the process! I don't want to hear it!'_ Before Ash could move, Soma held Ash with his giant hand and smashed his body against a building, knocking the wind out of him.

"Let's see your amazing tricks now, boy!" Soma growled. His hand started glowing bright red. Ash had no idea what he was doing until his body was suddenly engulfed in flames.

Satoshi watched Ash's anguish and suffering, feeling both furious and despaired. Far too many times he had seen this happen; Overzealous warriors who fought carelessly for a cause, only to die a dog's death. So much sorrow created from foolishness that was thought to be heroism or righteousness.

Never again would Satoshi allow someone to repeat what he had once done in the past.

'_Wait…there is one way to stop this…!'_ Because he was a spirit, there was one technique he could use that would turn this battle around.

But it would be his final technique.

With Soma, he lifted Ash in the air, done with his toying. "You've proven to be challenging, but your luck has run out. It is unfortunate you've turned out to be a shallow threat. Time for you to die."

"_Damn it…! Not yet!"_ Satoshi was doing his best to channel all of abilities. Hopefully he could pull it off before Ash was finished.

As Ash hung weakly from Soma's large fist, he still held great defiance; for both Soma and Satoshi. _'Don't do anything, Satoshi. I don't care if I end up dying because of my decision.'_

Satoshi's anger soared at the comment. _"You idiot! Why are you doing this now!? What is so important about your ridiculous decision that you're willing to die for!?"_

"Any last words, Ash Ketchum?" Soma spoke through deep snarls as he cocked his lethal claw, aiming for Ash's head.

Normally, this would be a dire moment for anyone. Ash somehow found some humor in it. Here two people were asking him his "final words" at the same time, unusual for someone like him. Unlike the movies or TV shows, he didn't have any flashbacks of his life or some kind of crazy revelation.

What he found was acceptance of his limitations.

"Yeah, just one." Ash grinned weakly, technically speaking to both Satoshi and Soma. _'Friends.'_ was his answer to Satoshi. His answer to Soma, however, was very different. "Thunder."

Out of Soma's view, an angry Pikachu pounced from a hidden spot and prepared to unleash the most powerful Thunder attack he could muster. "PIKA—"

_SMASH!_

Using Ash as a cannonball, Soma threw Ash at Pikachu, which canceled the attack and caused a painful collision. After hurtling several yards, Pikachu ended up unconscious after a previous beating from Soma and Ash was too dazed to even stand up. "Ugh…this is bad…" Ash knew he was in trouble the moment Soma anticipated the attack and countered it. He was out of tricks and plans for this battle.

His final battle.

"I won't waste anymore time. Die, Ash!" Soma sucked in a deep breath, taking in as much air as possible. "HA!" From his mouth erupted a great ball of condensed flame that would very well lead to the end of Ash and Pikachu. And with no strength to move, Ash was a sitting duck.

Ash had all but given up hope when the ball of flame struck, followed by a large explosion that engulfed the area in fire.

"Ha! I've finally crushed that fool once and for all!" Soma whooped victoriously. With another victory under his belt, he felt he was one step closer to taking revenge on Shinra who utterly humiliated him and took everything away from him. Just to make sure, he would have to check to see if Ash was truly dead, if anything was left of him and Pikachu. He was about a yard away when he noticed something within the fire, but it was too vague to make out. Strangely, it resembled human form. What was it?

_SLASH!_

"GRAAAAAH!" Soma roared with agony when a long, black blade lunged from the flames and slashed his chest. It was a very deep wound, but nothing fatal. "W-what!? It's impossible! I JUST killed you!"

(Need to be strong – Toshiro Masuda)

"Heh, it must really suck to be you, Soma." Satoshi remarked snidely. With the wave of his hand, the flames parted and dissipated from the sheer dark energy that emanated from him. Except for the red pupils, everything else was pure black, straight from the pit of darkness. He held onto a ridiculously large Shadow Blade that vanished in his hands.

The strangest part of this miraculous recovery was the fact Ash was still on the ground behind him.

"Ugh, Satoshi…!" Ash growled, infuriated. This attitude was quickly replaced with shock by Satoshi's glare. If looks could kill, Ash would be even more of a ghost than Satoshi.

"I'll deal with you after I kick Soma's flaming ass." Satoshi's tone was cold and biting, practically spitting acid at Ash. Not wasting any time, he didn't even give Soma a warning. After all, he didn't have much time. "Shadow Lance!"

_ZAM!_

The beam struck at Soma's chest and pushed him back a few meters. The towering beast, however, was still keeping his balance and prepared a counter attack. "Gun Flare Barrage!" Dozens of small, but dense fireballs launched from his hands at Satoshi, who took every blow.

'_I have to hurry. I won't last much longer like this!'_ Satoshi cocked one of his hands and focused all of his remaining power in it. It crackled with purple lightning, an effect caused by the swirl of black and purple energy in his hand. "It's time to end this! Oooh!" The force of the energy was so condensed it created several forces of burst that was even able to push Soma back.

Soma didn't like this one bit.

Jumping back, Soma gathered his fire energy for another Gun Flare Barrage. "Eat this! HA!"

"Take this!" With a battle cry that would shake the heavens, Satoshi ran at the vizier with his powerful attack in hand. With it, he knocked down the flurry of fireballs that flew his way. He couldn't let anything get passed him, or else Ash and Pikachu would get killed.

Unfortunately for Satoshi, Soma realized this quickly.

"Let's see you block this attack! Blazing REAVER!" Soma swiped his flame engulfed hand at Satoshi, unleashing a blade wave for each nail on his hand.

Satoshi noticed that one of the blades, if it passed him, would hit Ash dead on. With a cry, Satoshi knocked down two of the blades, one that aimed at his chest, which would've struck Ash, and his head. He jumped over two other blade waves and made his way flying at Soma.

Unfortunately, of the five blade waves, one of them struck dead on.

_SHING!_

The Blazing Reaver blade was so powerful it sliced cleanly through Satoshi's torso and one of his arms. Satoshi summoned every ounce of will he could and delivered his final attack. "SHADOW EDGE!"

_WHAM!_

"GAAAH!" Soma roared in agony as the ball of dark energy embedded into his chest, trying to pierce through.

Satoshi was not through yet. The energy ball in hand started shining brightly, preparing to burst. "IGNITE!"

_**KABOOM!**_

With that explosion, the two were blown away by the force. Soma was sent crashing through a wall while Satoshi was hurled into the air. The dust and debris left Soma's status unknown, but Satoshi's situation was obvious.

The end of his life drew near.

(Naruto Shippuuden – Despair)

As the remnants of Satoshi's body began to freefall, Ash gaped in sheer horror. "SATOSHI!" With a burst of strength he never realized, he sprinted to catch the spirit with his functioning arm. This was a new level of pain Ash never witnessed before, and it was hard to stomach it all in. Satoshi was torn diagonally from the waist and was missing an arm. But there was a fact Ash realized that made him pale considerably.

Satoshi felt the pain.

And it was all because of him.

"Satoshi! What's going on with you? I thought you couldn't feel pain unless you synced with me?"

Satoshi was breathing in large gasps, his face contorted with ungodly levels of pain. His eyes were barely open, the red irises staring at Ash. "Ugh…Ca…can't see…your dumb face…"

Feeling himself tearing up, Ash bit his lip to stifle it. Though in the face of death, Satoshi was still obnoxious and defiant. Even when the pain was great enough to take away his vision, the man did not change in the least. "Satoshi…I…"

"Don't…be a wuss. No… sorries…"

"But it was because of me that you're like this! Please, tell me what I can do to save you! Don't…" Ash could no longer hold back the tears that flowed like rivers down his face. "Don't die on me!"

Satoshi laughed weakly at the irony, his sightless eyes staring into the smoky sky. "Die…? I've been…dead for years. Only this time…for real…"

"That's a lie!" Ash denied fiercely. "A dead person couldn't have done the things you've done! We didn't get to know each other too well, but you were a mentor and a great friend. One of the greatest friends I've ever had. I just…I wish I was as strong and smart as you are. If I was…then you wouldn't be…"

"Quiet…fool…and listen…" Satoshi berated with a raspy voice. Breathing was growing more and more difficult with each second. His remaining time 'alive' was severely limited. "Revenge…pain…despair…it's all a…vicious cycle. If you died…your friends and family…would've…fallen into…the cycle." He coughed violently, a faint, black mist slowly escaping his body. "You die…Brock fights in place…and Misty too…even if they're still weak and injured…they will give their lives…to avenge yours…just as…Kasumi and Takeshi…would've done…for me."

'_Satoshi…'_ Ash was beginning to understand why Satoshi was trying so hard to get him to defeat Misty and use his power. He had a feeling Satoshi knew this would happen from the beginning.

"I rather die…than let my friends die…rather kill…than die…that's how I lived." Satoshi lifted his arm, reaching for the sky. "Damn Kasumi…said there would be light…but all I see…is darkness…"

"B-but…d-darkness isn't completely bad. Isn't that what right, Satoshi?"

Satoshi slowly lowered his hand, placing it over Ash's arm that held him. He smiled. "Heh…bout time…we agreed on…something. Here…" His hand glowed violet. The energy flowed from Ash's arm and slowly expanded to cover his entire body. "I'm useless now…carry the torch…and fight."

"Come on! Not like this…! Look, I'll use your powers, alright? I'll use it as much as you want! Maybe if you turned back into a spirit, you won't have to die! Ain't that right?" Ash began to shudder when he didn't receive a response. "…R-right?"

Satoshi's body began to fade away, growing transparent. His end was imminent. "Damn. In the end…never was able…to do much…of anything right. I can't even…settle the score…with Kasumi. I had always…thought she would be…the one to kill me. Heh, had it coming…" At this point, Satoshi was almost completely gone. "Ash…I need your help…for once."

"Anything." Ash nodded.

"Lean closer…message for Kasumi…" When Ash was close enough, he whispered the small message for Kasumi.

"…Okay. I'll tell her. Rest in peace…Satoshi…"

Satoshi released what would be his final, hearty laugh. "You're alright kid. You'll get far. Now…get out there…and…kick…ass…" Right then, the guardian of darkness faded from sight and existence.

Satoshi was dead.

"No..ugh…SATOSHI!!!!" With tear-stained eyes, Ash collapsed onto the ground, weeping uncontrollably. Satoshi gave his life so he could protect his friends. Not only that, but he understood things to which Ash did not even fathom. Because of his naivety and his hastiness, Satoshi was killed. Ash felt truly alone, and worse yet, remembered all the scolding words he received in the past. Everyone he knew seemed to be on such a high level of change and understanding…except him. He seemed to be the only one who hasn't changed in the years he traveled.

It took Satoshi's death to open his eyes to the truth.

'_Am I…really that dense? What have I been doing all this time?'_ So many emotions were beginning to flood his veins faster than Satoshi's last gift, which was his remaining mana and dark powers. As the powers began to awaken within him, Ash felt a sorrow and fury he never thought he held. However, as much as Ash wanted to reason out these radical emotions, this was no time to sit down and contemplate emotional matters.

Soma was still standing strong.

"Ugh, what a hit…" Soma pressed onto his fresh wound, which was bleeding profusely. If he wasn't in his awakened form, he would've died for sure. Satoshi had to be dead at least. But Ash was still alive, and he was going to much sure no more surprises awaited him.

It was too bad for Soma that the true surprises were about to begin.

(Dragonball Z – Spirit vs spirit)

Feeling a stunning amount of energy, Soma stared in surprise at Ash, who was overflowing with dark energy. He could not believe his eyes as he saw Ash crouched, clenching his fist and teeth tightly._ 'What the hell?' _When the vizier caught Ash's glare from his bangs, he froze on the spot. Something very big was going on with Ash, and he began to wish he wasn't going to find out.

Upon sight of Soma, Ash's hidden anger soared exponentially. If he didn't take down this tyrant, Satoshi's death would have been for nothing. It could also lead to the death of Misty and Brock. This was not a battle he could lose. "Soma…! I'm not going to let you get away with this! I will make you _PAY_! _**HAAAAA!**_"

_**CRASH!**_

The earth around Ash ruptured upon his roar. This newfound power fused with his own life-force to unlock a force that not even Soma had witnessed. His skin darkened as his hair grew longer and more radical while gaining red tips, and his eyes gained a jet black color, further enhancing the blood red irises. This transformation did not end there, for a black shroud covered his clothes, then body for a new transformation.

"No way…! That brat actually fused Satoshi's power with his own soul!" Soma was almost frightened by the unexpected show of will and power. He steeled himself, knowing a brutal fight awaited him.

The first thing unveiled from the black shroud were black, riveted metal plates on the back of his fingerless gloves that reached up to his elbows. A long black cape was added to his new outfit, cascading down to his ankles. The major colors of his clothes turned red while the rest were dark red. As the cloud of blackness faded, Ash stood proud with his latest transformation.

Though Satoshi was gone, his essence was still with Ash.

'_I won't let you die in vain, Satoshi.'_ Ash took a deep breath, winded from the rush of strength he suddenly gained. The healing properties of his transformation was amazing, completely healing his damaged arm. The refreshing power made him feel like he evolved into something greater than he used to be.

As he slid into his battle stance once more, he held renewed determination and strength. The battle was even now. "Let's finish this, Soma Homura! I'm going to crush you no matter what!" Ash's voice was very different, deeper and stronger than before. Though very similar to Satoshi's, it was still Ash's voice.

"That's what I'm talking about! Bring it on, Ash Ketchum! RAAAAH!" Soma thundered with battle lust.

The epic climax of this devastating battle had begun.


	22. Explosive Finale

_**FD 22 – Explosive finale**_

_(Anthem (we are the fire) – Trivium)_

The force of Ash and Soma's fist connecting created a shockwave powerful enough to put a dent into their surroundings. Even though Ash was infused with a newfound power, Soma still held melee combat superiority. He was pushed back from the clash with Soma pushing the offensive with his burning claws.

'_What the…?'_ Ash barely noticed a black silhouette that cast a shadow ahead of Soma's attacks. This made dodging ridiculously easier. _'Is this…Shadow Sight? Wait. How do I know this?'_ There were many things he somehow learned the instant he fused with Satoshi's power. Were Satoshi's memories fused with his as well? That just made things more interesting for Ash.

"Stand still, damn you!" Soma sped his attacks up, swinging at Ash with ungodly levels of speed. Even then, Ash was still smoothly evading his moves.

'_It's all coming to me…the true power behind darkness…'_ It was a strange feeling. It was as though his unconscious mind was somehow leaking answers subliminally. He had no idea how he just learned these things, but it felt like he had always known and was just now remembering it all. The true power of darkness did not involve what the other main elements did. It suddenly made sense why Satoshi taught him a fighting style that was unpredictable and versatile. It was time to put what he learned to practice.

Ash faded from sight just before Soma's claw could land on him, cutting through part of a building. "Damn. Where did he go?" Soma glanced about to try and find Ash.

"Shadow…"

"Got you!" Hearing the voice behind him, Soma turned around with his claws prepped to cut him in half.

"LEER!" Ash yelled, staring into Soma's eyes with his piercing black and red ones that glowed ominously.

Soma froze for a split second, stunned by the sudden glare Ash gave him. His face was unexpectedly close to his, surprising him for the moment. That moment was all Ash needed. Thrusting his palm at Soma's neck, Ash successfully knocked him back. He faded from sight again, planning another attack.

"Ugh, damn you!" Soma coughed, holding onto his neck. The Shadow Leer took away his guard, letting Ash land a critical strike on his neck.

"Shadow…"

"Not this time!" Soma leapt high in the air, making sure to avoid another surprise attack. He saw nothing, but knew he heard the voice coming from behind. What he didn't expect was for Ash to be above him.

"AXE KICK!" With a flip in the air, Ash landed a darkness infused kick to the back of Soma's neck. The blow surprised him and sent him crashing into the earth. Still in the air, Ash continued flipping, falling towards the downed Soma. "EXTEND!" Just before he landed, Ash's leg increased in darkness energy, preparing to land a more critical blow.

Soma leapt from the attack in the nick of time, avoiding what would have been a very damaging blow. Sliding into a halt, he counterattacked with several fireballs from his mouth. To his surprise, Ash quickly opened his cape and captured the fireballs into his cape.

The vizier suddenly felt several hot fireballs striking him from several directions. It did not hurt him much, but he surely did not expect that. Glancing at the sources, he gaped in surprise._ 'That brat! He opened black portals to redirect the fireballs!' _Once again, Soma made the mistake of not keeping complete focus on Ash.

"Shadow Lance!"

Soma dove to the side to avoid the beam attack. "Nice try, but you…wait…!" He was not going to fall for another trick. That was when he noticed a black portal opening on the side of a building, followed by a black beam shooting at him. He darted to the side again, noticing that the beam disappeared into another black portal.

Ash pulled back both of his hands, conjuring a mass of dark energy. "Shadow Lance Barrage!" He shot out his fist like machine guns, smaller versions of the Shadow Lance launching out of his fists. Dozens of beams were unleashed on Soma, who avoided and jumped over each attack while running at Ash. But Soma was in for a surprise as a maze of dark beams littered the battle field.

The beast humanoid used amazing feats of agility to evade as many lasers as possible. Each angle the beams was redirected to were unpredictable and cleverly shot. Whenever the beams struck him, it stung like a burning bullet. To get hit by all of them would be very painful. He also noticed that a majority of the bullets that missed were redirected back to Ash. Whenever they struck his cape, they were absorbed back into it. Was Ash infinitely recycling his energy?

"BLAZING REAVER!" Soma launched burning blade waves with both of his hands.

"Do a new trick already!" Ash managed to deflect each blade wave with his gauntlets. He struggled with the power of each wave, but managed to block them all.

Soma used that time wisely to close the distance.

"KETCHUM!" Soma lunged at Ash, swiping his claw at him.

To Soma's surprise, Ash dove even closer, just out of the range of Soma's claws. "Shadow Claw!"

Thanks to Satoshi's Shadow Edge, Soma had a major weak point in his chest area. This weakness was truly evident as Ash's claws tore deeply across his thick chest. He felt true agony with the incredibly painful burning sensation, causing him to stumble back. Ash took on the offensive this time, forming thick Shadow Claws and Shadow Talons on his limbs. Soma was surprised that _he _was on the defense this time.

'_I have to keep the pressure. I can't let him get his balance!'_ One of the tactics Ash learned is that he has to constantly keep his opponent off balanced and guessing. Judging from Soma's reaction, his chest was definitely the weak point. He could defeat Soma if he could land a powerful enough hit there. It was obvious Soma knew this. But the question was how would he reach it?

"FLAME SNIPE!"

Ash took a blow to the chest, knocking him back while scorching him there. Now Ash was left unstable and defensive against Soma's onslaught. He could not fully block Soma's heavy and fast attacks without breaking his limbs, but he could at least parry and dodge them. Thanks to the Shadow Sight, he could predict Soma's attacks half a second ahead of time, which was a life-saving half second. When he noticed an opening, he powered up his fist. "SHADOW PUNCH!"

"Not this time!"

Ash gasped as Soma bit his fist that was aiming for his chest. But his surprised changed to a confident smirk. "Shadow Lance!"

The vizier's mouth exhausted black fumes, choking on black energy. He had no choice but to release his bite, coughing from the devastating attack in his mouth. His chest was wide open for an attack.

'_This is my chance!'_ Ash ran at Soma's weak point and placed both of his hands together. A black ball of energy emerged as he quickly rammed it into Soma's chest. "SHADOW CANNON!"

The blast sent Soma flying, skidding painfully across the asphalt. He struggled to stand, receiving a critical strike on his weak point. "I…won't lose to you…!" Soma conjured a card in his hand, preparing to summon a defense force to buy time. "Come forth, Braid Claws!" From the card appeared several dozen Braid Claws. They spawned all around Ash, completely surrounding him. The move exhausted Soma completely, causing him to collapse on his knee. Hopefully they bought him enough time to recover.

The Braid claws hissed, toughened up by their master's call to battle. "Slay the human…!"

"Kill, kill…!"

"No mercy…!"

Ash remained unfazed by the numbers, glancing around. "Huh, there's properly over a hundred out there. Maybe more than that…" He smirked cockily. "Sounds like a fair fight." Smashing his fist together, dark energy cackled in his hands. All of the Braid Claws jumped at him as though on cue.

_(Fire – Scooter)_

A thrust kick from Ash downed the first Braid Claw, followed by an elbow to the face flooring the next one. "SHADOW KICK!" Spinning into a kick, Ash smashed two Braid Claws in the face, sending them flying. He continued spinning, powering up for a second strike on the opposite direction. "EXTEND!" A wave flew from his feet, knocking away a few more Braid Claws.

Keeping up the momentum, Ash jumped over a lunging Braid Claw and performed another Shadow Kick wave, taking a couple down. With a twirl, Ash landed a double split kick, knocking out two Braid Claws before landing. He parried a slash attack from a Braid Claw and performed a four hit punch combo before lifting the Braid Claw in the air with an uppercut. Quickly, he grabbed the Braid Claw and swung it like a bat, taking down a few approaching ones. He hurled it with all his strength towards three leaping ones, taking them out.

The Braid Claws grew more cautious, circling Ash carefully. Ash couldn't help but sigh. He only defeated about two dozen so far. He needed a faster way to defeat them so he could get to Soma quickly. There were plenty of them left. That was when he recalled another memory that was fused into his mind. The attack was just what he needed.

Ash started spinning, his arms powered with darkness. "Shadow Tornado!" Shooting out his fist rapidly, dozens of extended Shadow Punches flew out and struck all the Braid Claws surrounding him. After his third revolution, many of the Braid Claws were felled by the attack. Unfortunately, Ash got too dizzy and started stumbling on the battlefield.

"Kill…!" The remaining Braid Claws started rushing Ash in his dizzied state. Bad move.

Ash stumbled to the side to avoid a Braid Claw's stab attack and smashed his elbow into its face. He spun around just in time to dodge a vertical slash from another Braid Claw and slammed the back of his fist into the creature. As he leaned back to fall, he fell onto another Kaijudo, who was very surprised by this action. That was when Ash's palm found its way to its beak, almost smashing it in. The next Braid Claw tried to attack Ash with a furious series of attacks, but Ash's unpredictable and dizzy steps evaded the Braid Claw's attacks. Ash was almost out of his dizzy stupor when he tripped and ran head first into another Braid Claw, knocking that one out. It was back to dizzy mode for Ash.

"Why won't everything stop spinning!?" Ash slurred drunkenly out as several Braid Claws ran at him from all directions. He rammed his elbow into the stomach of the first one, struck the second one with a shoulder bash followed by a five hit palm combo and stumbled into a powerful kick on the next Kaijudo. He suddenly sat cross-legged, dodging a thrust attack from two Kaijudos rushing at his side. Their attacks collided into each other's faces, resulting in a simultaneous knockout.

Snapping out of his dizziness, Ash gasped as he noticed many unconscious Braid Claws around him. "What the? Who in the world did this?" The other Braid Claws stumbled over in astonishment. They had no idea he was _that_ much of a fool.

Ash noticed Soma in the distance, past a large gathering of Braid Claws. He was still fatigued, but gaining his strength. "I almost forgot about him! I have to hurry!" Forming Shadow Claws and Talons, Ash rushed towards Soma as fast as he could, slashing through a dozen Braid Claws in the process.

Swiping his claws of darkness, Ash tore through a few Braid Claws. He leapt into a flying knee attack into a Kaijudo's face, following up with a double Shadow Claw on two other Braid Claws on the way down. Rolling forward, he jumped forward in a lunge, cutting two more Braid Claws in the process. He continued his charge, treating one unlucky Braid Claw to a foot in the face.

A few Braid Claws latched onto Ash, biting and slashing at him in the process. "Get OFF!" Ash shook off the hanging Kaijudos, unleashing a skillful combo on them. They weren't getting up any time soon. Only two dozen Braid Claws were left.

"It's time to finish off these guys!" As faded from sight, leaving the clustered Kaijudos confused. Above the large group, Ash powered up for a devastating attack. "Shadow…!" His entire body started brimming with shocking levels of dark energy. "POWERBOMB!"

Diving down, Ash struck the earth with a cataclysmic explosion, the blast wiping out the remaining Kaijudos with an incredible display of power. Ash defeated the Braid Claws army. Unfortunately, he used up a major portion of his energy, leaving him winded and weakened.

"All that's left is Soma." Ash focused carefully on Soma as he stumbled towards him. He was still crouched, but his eyes were dilated and he made no move to attack. Something was wrong with this situation. "Did he…faint?" With cautious steps, he moved closer to Soma. He jumped back when a growl escaped Soma's lips.

"Shinra…" Soma slowly stood up, his blank eyes staring at Ash. Blood dripped from his mouth and wounds, giving him an even more frightening visage. "How dare you turn against me…!"

'_Shinra? Why is he calling me that?'_ Ash started stepping back as Soma drew closer to him.

"After all I had done for you. The battles we fought together. Yet after everything…you took my life away. You robbed me of everything I cherished. What have I done to deserve this?"

Ash could feel the despair and anger coming from Soma. Why it was directed at him, he had no idea. But a startling thought alarmed him at the possibility. _'Is he hallucinating?'_

"I should've known better than to trust you…than to trust anyone! Comrades? Trust? I will do without and crush all in my way! I swear on my life that I won't let you get away with this! I WILL KILL YOU HERE AND NOW!" The following roar shook the area, all of his anguish and sorrow combined into an explosive force.

Ash was beginning to understand the drive behind Soma's actions. He wanted to get stronger to get back at the person that took everything away from him. That was when Satoshi's words ran through his mind. Pain is an endless cycle of suffering. When something someone cherishes is lost, the cycle of revenge and sorrow begins. Soma felt that pain and fell into the cycle. He truly pitied him. However, this was not the time to start feeling sorry and holding back.

Ash braced himself for the final fight. He would take Soma down here and now. _'I can understand why he feels this way.'_ Though he felt anger for Soma taking away Satoshi's life, he could see that Soma felt similar towards Shinra. The cycle of hatred already started. But he would not fall to it. He owed it to Satoshi to stop it.

_(Through the fire and flames – Dragonforce)_

"DIE!" Soma rushed at Ash with all his might.

"Time to take you down, Soma!" Ash jumped away from Soma's slash attack, countering with a heavy Shadow Punch to his face. Though it connected, Soma pushed through it as though it wasn't there. Ash felt pain explode in his head as a powerful punch struck him in the face, lifting him off his feet.

As Ash was in the air, he quickly spotted several Flame Snipes from Soma heading in his direction. With quick aerial footwork, he used his Shadow Kick to destroy the explosive attacks. He managed to land safely and pounced forward with Shadow Claws. His speed and agility helped gain some blows on the tyrant, but Soma's overwhelming strength and ferocity made sure Ash could not get in too many attacks. Ash's new gauntlets proved to be very effective at guarding as well as delivering powerful punches. Ash knew he was in trouble once Soma grabbed his arm with his tail.

Soma flashed his palms at Ash. "Shotgun Flare!" A dozen small fireballs shot out of Soma's palms at once, pumping Ash with scorching hot explosive blast.

Ash wanted to scream as he felt his skin burn and gain painful bruises, but stifled it. Instead, he returned it with his own attack as he used Soma's tail as leverage to lift his body, pointing his feet at Soma's chest. "Shadow Talon!" As hard as he could, Ash stabbed at Soma's chest with his sharp dark talons. A few hits were all it took for Soma to release Ash and back away.

His chest bleeding profusely, Soma started coughing up abnormal amounts of blood. He knew he was going well beyond his limit, but he did not care. The person he saw in front of him was a traitor, a nemesis, someone who he deemed no longer worthy of mercy. Shinra deserved to die, and he would do so by giving his life if necessary. To let Shinra get away would be a fate worse than death.

"I can't…I won't let you…Shinra…!" Soma's mind was filled with so much pain and anger he could not think clearly. His only clear thought was to kill Shinra. Nothing else mattered. Not even himself.

"It is time…" Soma's body was engulfed in white hot flames. It was time to go out in a blaze of glory. Crossing his arms, he began channeling all of his power. The Adrenaline Pill he ate earlier allowed him to push his powers past the breaking point, but doing so had lethal consequences. Already he could feel his body being ripped apart from the stress.

"TO FINISH YOU!" Slamming his fist into the ground, a wave of fire exploded, stunning Ash with the heat and force.

Ash felt breathless from the incredible force that swept through him. The fire wave forced him to guard his face, feeling intense heat wrap around his frame. Within moments, he felt a fist drive into his stomach, breaking his ribs and searing his stomach. Dropping his arms involuntarily, Ash saw Soma's other hand slamming a ball of fire into his chest. The burning feeling on his chest last only a moment, but the boiling pain on his chest would last for months. This was followed by an explosion from that fireball.

Ash flipped in the air, reeling in pain. If it wasn't for the armor Brendan created for him earlier, he was positive there would be a hole in his chest. As he was flying in the air, he saw Soma jumping in the air, his hands aimed at him.

"RAGING HELLFIRE!" Soma finished the combo by firing a destructive red and orange beam at the trainer.

"Shadow Shield!" Ash quickly erected a black barrier in front of him to soak up the damage. Unfortunately, it lasted only a moment before shattering like glass.

Crashing into the ground, in combination with being burned alive by the devastating heat beam brought Ash to the brink of death. It was lucky the dark energy he had helped to reduce the power of the Raging Hellfire, otherwise he would have been long dead. The attack lasted for several agonizing second before Soma landed on the ground.

Soma started panting heavily, trying to stay alive long enough to finish what he set out to do. "I know you're not dead, Shinra. But with my last technique, I will make sure to take you to hell with me!" The flames around him burned brighter, putting his life on the line. This time Shinra would die.

"Damn…is this it…?" Ash lay on the ground as a smoking heap, finding no strength left to fight back. He could see Soma charging up for a final strike. After everything he vowed to do, it would all be for nothing. Satoshi's death, fighting his own friends, his training for the tournament, everything Ash went through would end here, changing nothing.

"Blazing…!"

'_I guess I really am at my limit. Even with Satoshi's help.'_ This had to be the end. How could he possibly face someone as powerful as Soma? He barely had the strength to remain conscious. Recognizing the area, he turned his head to view his surroundings one last time. It was there he saw a startling sight, the hospital. The same hospital his friends were recovering at was in Soma's direct line of fire.

"Death…!"

'_No…not here!'_ Ash's body ached, screaming with ungodly pain. Regardless of the pain, Ash pulled himself together as much as he could. "M-Misty…Brock…can't let…them die…n-no way…" Miraculously, he was able to stand on his feet. Facing the burning engine of destruction, he steeled him and bit back the pain. Either he stopped Soma here or let his friends die. This would Ash's defining moment.

"RAVE!" Soma flew forward, raising his fist for his most devastating attack.

'_I won't let it end here! I will stop him! I have to!'_ Ash glared into the incoming lethal force with insurmountable courage. There was no turning back. This was Ash's last stand.

_(9th symphony new world, 4th movement – Dvorak)_

"I…can't lose here! E…everyone's counting on me…!" Ash braced through the burning pain coursing through his body, preparing for his final stand. As Soma neared with his Blazing Death Rave, Ash slowly moved his hands to his side. He felt hot energy charging through his body as he channeled as much darkness energy as he could. Though his mind started throbbing with agony from the strain, he continued on. Within his hands was a mass of energy, purple electricity crackling around it. This was Ash's final move.

"DIE YOU BASTARD!" Soma was only mere feet away when Ash aimed his hands at Soma.

"SHADOW…!" A ball of dark energy shot at Soma's face, exploding upon contact. It was not enough to stop him. But the second shot was enough to do the job.

"GATLING…!" Ash shot a third round just a swift as the second, knocking Soma back with the dense, crushing force. With every ounce of power remaining, Ash unleashed his payload into his final attack.

"CANNON!" With several rounds of violet balls per second, Ash's Shadow Gatling Cannon started pushing Soma back with rapid speed. Soma could feel his bones being broken as each blast struck him. There was no chance of pushing through this attack.

The series of powerful cannonball blast slammed Soma into the wall of a decayed building and was getting constantly smashed against it. Ash emptied his remaining payload which lasted only several more seconds, but the force was enough to push Soma through it.

After the attack ended, intense silence followed. Ash stumbled forward, giving his best just to stand straight. His body was wracked with pain and exhaustion. It was impossible do anything more. He watched as the dust settled. His eyes slowly widened as he saw Soma's broken body lay on the ground unconscious. Ash defeated Soma.

"I…I did it…I did it you guys…" Ash's vision grew hazy and bright as his mental strain reached its limit. Suddenly, everything turned white in his vision, whiting out.


	23. The Darkness before the dawn

_**Final Chapter – The darkness before the dawn  
**_

"_Where…am I?" Ash found himself on the floor of an empty void. Nothing was the only word he could find suitable for it. There was nothing to hear, see, or feel. As he pushed himself off the ground, he wasn't even sure if he could call it a ground. It didn't feel like anything was there. The only explanation he could think of was some kind of force acting for a ground. This room was not an unfamiliar sight._

_It quickly came to him as he remembered where he was. 'This is my unconscious mind, where I first met…' That was when his heart tightened painfully, recalling Satoshi's death. "Damn it…why did you have to die?" His voice echoed endlessly, fitting for such an empty space. Collapsing on his hands and knees, Ash did not hold back the tears that flowed from his eyes. Satoshi was not just a friend; he was also a part of him.  
_

"_If only I was strong and smart as him…he would still be here…" Ash did not deny being the cause of Satoshi's demise. He made bad decisions in the past, but none of them cost someone's life. The guilt was unbearable. His chest clinched tightly as he fell on his side, curling into fetal position. The more the truth settled in, the more pain he felt. His friend was gone forever and there was nothing he could do about it._

_He felt himself sinking slowly. Snapping open his teary eyes, he noticed a black void sucking him in. He flailed his arms feebly in a panicked attempt to climb out. "What the? I can't get out!" The dark quicksand pulled him in faster as he started thrashing about. It did not feel like sand, but weightless goop that had no tangible buoyancy. The situation grew worse as it tried to wrap around his body. It was as if it was alive and trying to devour him. Fear gripped Ash's heart like never before. "Someone, anyone, please, I don't want to die!" Even if this was his dream, he did not want to die of drowning in whatever the living pool was._

_As if to answer his call, Ash saw familiar figures materialize around him. His heart was filled with hope at the sight of his friends. "Misty, Brock! Pull me up!" He extended his hand out, fear strong in his eyes. To his horror, his friends made no move to same him. The disgusted and harsh stares he received destroyed all hopes he had for being saved. "G-guys…?"_

"_You shouldn't have been such an idiot, Ash." Misty words were filled with such hatred that it shocked Ash._

"_I knew you were a fool, but not so much that you would let Satoshi die like that. You deserve to die." Brock also spoke with intense repulsion and loathing._

"_D-don't do this! You know I didn't mean for that to happen!" Ash was startled as he started sinking slightly faster, everything below his chest engulfed by darkness._

"_Doesn't matter if you didn't mean to or not, it still happened."_

"_You still let Satoshi die. What's to say you won't let the same thing happen to us if we saved you?"_

"_I won't let that happen! I swear I won't let that happen to you guys or anyone else!" Ash tried to hold a determined expression, but faltered under the stress of his terror.  
_

"_Of course you would say that. Anyone in your position would say anything to get out of your situation."_

"_You look so pathetic right now Ash. Always relying on your friends to do everything for you. What about me? What about Misty? Must we do all the thinking for you?"_

"_I…" Ash's words were stuck in his throat. He could not think of anything to counter what they said._

"_Stop relying on everyone you come across. Maybe if you weren't so stupid, you could do something yourself."_

"_You should try thinking for once. Maybe you won't let anyone else get killed. Then again, that doesn't matter if you die now, does it?"_

"_No…please…don't do this! Guys? …Guys?" Ash was neck deep, struggling to keep his head above the darkness."_

"_Go away Ash."_

"_Just die already."_

"_No, wait, please! Don't go! Don't leave me! Please!" Another moment of horror occurred as a giant black hand arose from the black pool, hovering over Ash. "Save me! Please! Don't let it—" Before he could finish, the hand clasped over and dragged him under. The last sight Ash saw was his best friends turning their backs on him and walking off, wearing evil grins. This was a true nightmare for Ash, emotionally crushed._

"_Awaken, insect."_

_Ash's eyes slowly opened, hearing a deep, booming voice. First thing he noticed was that he was floating. What was causing him to float, however, was not the same force as earlier. It was a hand. A very large hand. It was dark green with thin, long fingers and sharp claws to match. In the middle of the hand was a large black hole with an orange and red outline. "What on…?" His eyes followed the hand, noticing a thick beige extension coming out of the forearms, resembling blades. Once his eyes fell on the creature its hand belonged to, his body froze with terror. He wanted to scream, but fear gripped his voice. _

_The creature was massive, having dark green skin with beige and flesh colored outlines on its exoskeleton. Its wings were extremely wide, feathers billowing in the air. Large horns adorned its head, bright yellow eyes piercing through Ash like a spear. It sat crossed-legged, floating majestically in the air. The amount of fear it was able to induce was beyond anything Ash thought possible. _

"_What is your name?" The creature's voice sent chills down Ash's back, making him shudder with fright. Ash opened his mouth to speak, but was too shocked to utter a word. The beast grew impatient. "SPEAK!"_

"_A-A-Ash Ketchum!"  
_

"_Interesting…" Bringing Ash closer, the large demon-like creature analyzed him with great curiosity._

_Ash steeled himself the best he could. It did not seem like the beast wanted to devour him. Another untapped memory sprang to life, recalling a name. "…Ballom?"_

"_That's Lord Ballom, insect."  
_

_Ash was in no position to question someone that could crush him at will. "S-sorry!"_

_Ballom continued to analyze him inquisitively, shifted its jowls to what resembled a smirk. "I see. So you have truly manifested Satoshi's soul within your own. That's a first for someone such as you, lightdweller._

"_Lightdweller?"_

"_You didn't know? You have not been well informed, insect. But that matters not. I've taken an interest in you."_

"_In me? Why?"_

"_You are a walking contradiction, a perfect fusion of two opposites in one soul. Very few have done what you did, and those who succeeded carried with them the power to rival gods."_

_Ash was completely lost. Having the power to rival gods? Definitely not him. "There's no way I could hold that much power."_

"_Ah, but you can, and will. I will see to it that you will take Satoshi's place and become a champion worthy of representing me. I will destroy you and rebuild you into my image." With the wave of a hand, a strange insignia appeared on Ash's palms and back of his cape, shaped like a mask with two horns extended on each side. _

"_But…I don't want that kind of power. What would I do with it?"_

"_This was not a choice, insect. You will become my servant and my champion. Slay those who oppose you in my name, and become the angel of death! Now awaken from your slumber and return to the world as death incarnate!" Before Ash could utter a word, Ballom clenched his hand around him._

Ash shrieked as he sat up, cold sweat pouring down his face. His scream of terror turned into a wail of pain as the sudden rush gave him a massive head rush, as well as his sore body responding to his movements. He barely noticed two figures flinching next to him as he tried to recompose himself, his eyes temporarily blinded by the bright lights in the white room. It took moments for him to realize that he was in a hospital.

"Ash! What's wrong?"

"Don't push yourself."

"Pikapi!" Ash felt something jump onto his lap, happy to see his Pikachu healthy again.

Brock and Misty leaned towards him with concerned gazes. Ash could not have been more thankful to see the positive versions of his friends crowding around him. His momentary calm ended when he glanced at his palms. Ballom's mark was still there. Even stranger, his skin tone and clothes he had from his previous battle was still there. A shudder escaped his lips at the realization. "N-no…it can't be…!"

Misty lightly shook Ash, gaining Ash's attention. "Snap out of Ash! Tell us what's wrong!"

"Satoshi…nightmare…B-Ballom…" Ash spoke his words the best he could, but was too focused on the mark of his hands. It gave Ash an ominous feeling involving Ballom and him trying to destroy and rebuild him. But was that nightmare really just a nightmare, or something worse?

"Ballom!?" Kasumi and Takeshi appeared, staring at Ash with shocked expressions.

"Will someone please explain what's going on!?" Misty exasperated.

Kasumi knelt against the bed, moving closer to Ash's face. It was clear she was trying to keep a tight grip on her emotions. "Ash, what happened to Satoshi?"

Ash was immediately taken out of his confused state, surprised with Kasumi's keen awareness. "H-how did you know?"

Kasumi's head lowered, avoiding Ash's gaze. There was a tense silence before she spoke again, her voice shaken. "Did...h-he have any last words?"

Ash, while thankful he didn't have to come right out and say the bad news, felt terrible for Kasumi. He was still curious on how she knew. "He told me to tell you 'Thanks. You win.'"

A shudder escaped Kasumi's breath. Looking into her eyes, Ash could understand her emotions on a level he could never have before fusing Satoshi's soul. There was so much hurt and pain Kasumi was trying to hold back. The way she bit her lip showed intense strain. He felt even worse about his friend's death after seeing Kasumi's sorrow. She whispered so low that Ash barely heard her. "I hate you, Satoshi. You left me alone again…"

"Kasumi…" Takeshi's expression was impassive, his voice low, "You don't have to do this."

"It's okay. They deserve to know. Besides, Satoshi would make a mockery out of me if I wasn't the one to tell them. I'll be alright, Takeshi." Moments of tension passed before Kasumi was able to lift her head and met everyone's eyes, putting her pain to the side. "Misty, Brock. Satoshi...is dead."

"Oh god no...." Misty covered her gasped, doing her best to hold back tears. Ash could relate.

Brock's hands curled into a tight fist. "This...is unforgivable..." It was rare to see Brock with such a cold and angry expression. If looks could kill, Soma would have been turned to dust.

"To make matters worse, Ash has met Ballom, the god of devils. He is the Kaijudo god of the darkness element. It's very rare for anyone to meet a Kaijudo god. This means that he saw particular interest in Ash. I don't know what he has planned, but the mark on his hands means he is targeted by Ballom. This poses a huge problem."

Ash grew more and more worried with each word Kasumi spoke. "Why? What will happen to me?"

"I don't know. Satoshi went through the same thing you did. I have no idea what Ballom did, but Satoshi could not sleep for days, even weeks. At some points, he started to have hallucinations and even went insane occasionally. Whether Ash will go through the same thing or not I do not know. However, we have to keep a careful watch over him. There's no telling what will happen."

Ash did not like the sound of this. Losing sleep? Going insane? That was the last thing he needed. Speaking of need, he noticed a collection of items on the counter next to him. There was an open GS ball, his Pokéballs, hat, and Pokédex; all items that were stolen by Soma. But something was missing. "Hey, what happened to the shards? And why is the GS ball opened?"

"That's the weird part. We got everything from Violet after the tournament, but for some reason, we didn't get the shards. Also, the GS ball was like that when we got it. According to Takeshi, it could be that Soma released the spirits that were captured inside." Brock answered.

Misty made an exasperated sigh. "We tried to talk to them, but Zansei reinforced the door with sand, so it's impossible for us to get in. The only thing we can do is wait for them to come out."

"So Soma kept the shards for himself after all. Damn him…!" Even after all the trouble Ash went through to get everything back, Soma had the nerve to go back on his word and keep the shards, which were vitally important. Soma had already taken Satoshi away from him. He refused to let that vizier take anything else. "I'm not going to let him get away with this!" As he tried to flip out of his bed, he got tangled in the white blanket that was over him, and fell face first onto the marble floor. A flash of white in his eyes was followed by immense pain on his forehead, nose and mouth.

Everyone ran to his side, slowly trying to lift him up. "Geez Ash, be more careful. We don't need you being unconscious for another two weeks." Brock chided lightly.

"Seriously, you can be such an idiot sometimes." Misty sighed.

The word idiot brought Ash's thoughts back to his nightmare. They too called him an idiot, though in a much darker tone. But scenarios such as these made him remember all the other times he needed help and was called an idiot. A tear escaped his eyes as he felt the harsh truth of his nightmare hit him hard. According to Kasumi, he would need more help, and might even be a further hindrance. That broke his heart. "Heh, you're right Misty. I am an idiot…" He could not stand the pain of being near them. Escape was a must. Grabbing Pikachu, he used Shadow Shift to escape from the room. He did not care where he went. He just needed to be alone.

Just as he wished, he appeared in another room nearby. That was when he let his emotions go, gritting his teeth. He held tightly onto Pikachu, who was very worried for his friend. "I'm sorry Pikachu, I just couldn't take it. My nightmares, the mark of Ballom, Satoshi's death, it's just too much. I don't want to be burden Misty and Brock any more. I'm already trouble enough as it is." Hugging Pikachu tighter, small sobs escaped his lips. He was an unhealthy combination of anger, depression, fear and sorrow all at once. With everything happening so quickly, he needed some time to collect himself before facing it head on.

"He's actually crying to his Pikachu. Talk about embarrassing."

"I always knew he was a wimp, but this is too much."

Ash blushed furiously, recognizing Soma and Zansei's whispers. His glance slowly turned, catching the two viziers chuckling to themselves. "Uh…" There wasn't much he could think of to say in this situation, too shocked with the obscene probability of accidentally teleporting to Soma's room.

"That reminds me, just what the hell are you doing here?" Soma shifted awkwardly in his bed, wrapped heavily in his bandages. Zansei sat on a chair across from Soma, unable to contain the laugh he was desperately holding back.

"Soma!" Ash stood up, glaring at the tiger humanoid. "We had a deal! What happened to the shards we were supposed to get?"'

"Are you really that stupid? Of course I wouldn't give those back."

"You…you coward! Give them back!" Filled with rage, Ash lunged at Soma with his fist. It was inches from his face when Soma's striped tail coiled around his arm.

"You're such a brat. For someone who preaches about friendship and morals, you're damn quick to punch an injured man in a hospital."

"Why you…!" Ash continued to try and punch him, only to be repeatedly blocked. It angered him to no end that Soma would do this to him after everything he put them through. He did not care if his attacks did nothing to the tyrant. His anger was driving him and he would let out all of his frustrations on Soma.

Two voices beyond the sand barred door alerted Ash, stopping his raging attacks. They were inaudible from his distance. Ash could have sworn the voices belonged to Misty and Brock. Curiosity grabbed him as he took his attention away from Soma to step closer. He was thankful that Soma and Zansei did not care enough to interrupt him, but still growled under his breath at the obscene jokes they threw his way.

Stepping closer, his guess proved correct. He could hear them speaking through the door. "They must be looking for me…" He placed his ear against the wall, hoping to make out what they were saying.

"What is going on with that boy? First he starts talking all weird and stuff and now he disappears on us!" Misty exasperated.

Brock grunted, also annoyed. "He could've at least talked to us a bit before ditching us."

'I'm sorry guys…' Ash felt bad for making them worry, but he could not handle his rabid emotions while being next to them.

"Hey Brock, about Ash, what do you think is going on with him? Not only is it the way he's acting, but its his eyes, it…scares me the way he looks at us now."

"All the more reason to find him. Let's search elsewhere."

Ash sunk to the floor as he heard his friends step away, sadness filling his heart. Now that he thought about it, whenever he made eye contact with Misty or Brock, they flinched slightly. It did not feel good to know he was frightening his friends, that his new form struck fear into his friends. The thought made him even more depressed.

"Hey, I need to talk to you about something, seriously."

Leaning against the door, Ash glared at Soma with his arms crossed. The vizier gave him an inquisitive, serious stare which demanded attention. "About what?"

"Why are you guys searching for the Final Destiny shards?"

"I found one earlier when I arrived at Kanto a few weeks ago. After hearing about it from Satoshi and Kasumi, we started searching for it to make sure it didn't fall into the wrong hands."

"And what did you plan to do with them once you found them all?"

Ash hesitated, scratching his head habitually. The thought never occurred to him until now. "What did I plan to do?"

"Of course. There must've been something you would gain from this, some reason other than just protecting them."

"Hmm…I never really thought about that…"

Soma groaned with great irritation, running his palm down his face. "You mean to tell me you never once thought of what to do if you found all of them?"

"Er…not really. I guess it was more of an excuse for me to travel again." From the look of Soma's eyes, Ash could tell he did not believe him. Thinking back, that hunger for purpose in life was satiated with the shard hunt. He was sure feeding that wanderlust was his true motivation for collecting the shards. "It's the first time in a long time I've felt my journey had a true purpose, so I kinda just went along with it. I never had a plan on what to do with those things in the first place, but I never wanted to use it for anything bad. I guess it was pretty dumb to get this far without thinking it through a bit more."

There was a lengthy silence of disbelief on Soma and Zansei's part. That is, until Soma broke it with a heavy sigh. "No, it's not dumb. It's retarded. You kids have got to be the most childish and naïve group of people I've ever seen. Who goes after a powerful artifact without even thinking what to do with it?"

"Um…yeah…" Ash had to admit, Soma was right.

"But you guys definitely are an entertaining bunch. I can see you aren't after the shards for selfish reasons, though you don't exactly have a reason to be searching in the first place. Therefore, I would like to propose a deal with you." Soma grinned confidently. "If you and your friends join us, we can help bring Satoshi back."

* * *

I'm FINALLY done with book 1 of Final Destiny! I would like to thank everyone for their support through these years, and know that I WILL finish this series. Also, I will be practicing a more refined, professional style of writing (but still keep the awesomeness that I've worked with until now). Nothing shall be left unfinished unless something dramatic happens. But once again, I am so thankful for all the readers I've gotten so far and I aim to keep it that way! See you guys next book!

P.S. Don't forget to view my profile for a poll considering Bushido League.


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